Cruise calls
Durban is southern Africa's cruise homeport, with a purpose-built cruise terminal, seasonal homeporting of ships on Indian Ocean itineraries to Mozambique and the islands, and the port's repair and supply capacity behind it. Maingate Shipping coordinates cruise calls and homeport turnarounds at Durban through its partner at the port.
Homeport operations repeat weekly through the season, so the desk builds a standing plan with the terminal, the ground handler and the suppliers and runs it on every turnaround.
Weekly turnaround plan with the terminal: passenger flow, baggage, transfers to King Shaka International Airport, immigration processing for embarking and disembarking passengers, and provisioning in the volumes a homeport call needs.
Berth at the cruise terminal, advance manifests and clearance, excursion coaches marshalled with the line's operator, and the crew changes and spares that fall on the call.
Bunkers and fresh water fitted into the turnaround, drydock and repair bookings coordinated with the owner's technical team, and the Maputo, Inhambane and island calls on the itinerary planned by the same desk with its partners there.
This desk is part of Maingate Shipping Limited, the Mombasa ship agency, crewing and brokerage house that has attended vessels at Kenyan ports since 2020 from its office at Express Building, Moi Avenue. Port agency at Mombasa and Lamu is handled by the company's own boarding officers; calls elsewhere in Africa run through the Maingate agency line under one DA format and one reporting style; Kenyan seafarers are recruited and managed from the same office; and the chartering desk fixes the tonnage that brings East Africa its wheat, fertilizer, clinker and fuel.
Principals deal with one desk for the whole voyage, and every service is agreed in writing before it is performed.
Yes. A standing turnaround plan is agreed with the terminal and the ground handler and run every week.
Yes, through our partners at Maputo and the other ports on the route.
Yes. Durban is an established bunkering port.
One instruction, one account, one contact for the master and one for the principal.
Related desks on the same instruction line.
Also on maingateshipping.com: Ship agency at Mombasa · Ship agency and charter brokers · Ship brokerage · About Maingate · Contact
Maingate Shipping Limited · Express Building, Moi Avenue, Mombasa, Kenya · ops@maingateshipping.com · +254 784 622 091