Carnival Corporation Boosts Eco-Tourism with Acquisition of 5,000 Local Palm Trees for Celebration Key

Saturday, April 27, 2024

Carnival Corporation & plc has announced the acquisition of 5,000 palm trees from Grand Bahama, all grown locally from seed. These trees will enhance Celebration Key, the company’s premier cruise port destination. Phase One of their ‘Plant a Tree’ campaign has been a notable success, with 40 percent of the trees sourced from small-scale community growers on the island.

The initiative aims to highlight Grand Bahama’s natural beauty at Celebration Key, promoting sustainable practices, empowering the local community, and providing financial support to small growers. This effort also showcases the island’s stunning native plant life to cruise guests worldwide.

“The Grand Bahama community’s enthusiastic participation has been instrumental in achieving this milestone,” said Raquel Mota, Senior Port Services Manager, Carnival Corporation. “The initiative was launched in October 2023 and we have already met our target for the first phase.

“We want to congratulate and say thank you to every local grower who took part. We encourage them to keep up the good work as Carnival Corporation intends to continuing partnering with as many Grand Bahamians as possible as we move toward the opening of Celebration Key.”

On Wednesday, Carnival Corporation organized a tree planting ceremony to honor the leading contributors to their initiative, focusing on “Best Quality Plants” and “Most Plants Provided.” The winners received project shirts and dinner vouchers as tokens of appreciation, along with an invitation to witness the flourishing results of their efforts at Celebration Key once the port is accessible.

Leslie Saunders, who has sold more than 200 plants to Carnival Corporation through the initiative so far, said: “We are very thankful for this initiative as it has allowed us to profit from working on the land. I want to thank Carnival for believing in Bahamians and supporting the efforts of local growers in a meaningful way. It is also a source of pride to know that the development will be beautified by native plants, born and raised in Grand Bahama.”

He said he intends to continue supplying plants to beautify Celebration Key as the initiative moves forward.

Mota announced that building upon the success of Phase 1, which focused on palm trees, Carnival Corporation is launching Phase 2 starting on May 9^th, 2024 which will focus on an array of native plants including Gumbo-Limbo, Seagrape, Silver and Green Buttonwood, Green Island Ficus and Bougainvillea of various colors.

She said: “Once again, we are calling on the Grand Bahama community to participate actively.  “We are looking for plants with good foliage and roots, among other quality requirements so bring us your best green thumb efforts!”

Beginning on May 9th, you can drop off your plant contributions at ATO Landscaping, Gina Farms Site, Grand Bahama Highway, on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 am to 11 am. Carnival invites all interested growers to meet with the landscaping team beforehand to discuss their production capabilities for Phase 2. For further details on this initiative, visit https://celebrationkeygrandbahama.com or follow ‘Celebration Key Grand Bahama’ on Facebook and Instagram for a list of requirements and needed plants.

In all, Carnival Corporation is seeking 200,000 locally grown plants to adorn Celebration Key through the various stages of this initiative. Mota added: “We want to showcase the very best of the natural splendor of Grand Bahama at Celebration Key to our guests, while also creating economic opportunities for Bahamians. Together we can create a vibrant, sustainable environment that benefits both locals and visitors alike.”

The newly announced $100 million pier extension is part of a larger $600 million project that is expected to create more than 700 permanent jobs in Grand Bahama. These jobs will be in various sectors such as food and beverage, retail, and transportation, providing direct employment opportunities. Additionally, at least 75% of the outlets in Celebration Key will be owned and operated by Bahamians.

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