Ascension Island – Arriving by Cruise Ship

If you are want to be sure that you will get to Ascension Island (or St Helena) and have more than a few hours visit you will have to arrive by the RAF flight from the UK (suspended indefinitely in May 2017) or by the RMS St Helena from Cape Town via Jamestown, St Helena. See separate reviews for these options.

An alternative way of getting to the Ascension or St Helena is to join a cruise which stops at either or both these islands.

If you do this you will have around 4-6hrs on each Island assuming you get to land and therein lies the problem.

While 4-6hrs will only giving you a cursory appreciation of either place it is all some may want or have time for and, of course, it is better than nothing.

The problem I refer to is that it is very common for cruise ships to arrive at both islands and for passengers not to be permitted to disembark – the reason given is typically safety concerns. Neither island has a pier at which any boat can dock so all ships anchor at sea and passengers are transferred in by tender. Unloading and reloading 1000-2000 passengers in daylight hours is a challenge even in perfectly calm seas – it becomes dangerous even with a slight swell. You can understand a captains concern in getting 2000 people up and down the steps in the attached picture in 6-7 hrs – and also permit them time for a quick tour. While my picture is a night shot arrivals only take place during the day.

Remember that cruise ships do not have to stop here as they do not refuel here or take on provisions. Accordingly, if the captain has any concerns re safety, passengers will not be let disembark – also if the ship has lost time elsewhere not stopping here lets it make up lost time.

While we were on St Helena another large cruise ship visited and passengers were let off. The previously scheduled arrival was cancelled. The same ship pulled into Ascension but did not let anyone off due to safety concerns – the sea appeared dead calm to me.

Bottom line – arriving by cruise ship is hit and miss so if you must visit either place I recommend you use the RAF flight or RMS St Helena as appropriate. The RMS St Helena, given the nature of the ship, always stops and passengers get off.

Another factor worth mentioning is that, quite frankly, neither island can properly cope with up to 2,000 people popping in – facilities are limited.

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This blog entry is one of a group (loop) of entries on my trip to Ascension Island. I suggest you continue with my next entry – HERE.
To return to the beginning of this loop click HERE.

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