pinta-nina-beaufortOn Thursday April 29,  the ‘Pinta’  and the ‘Nina’,  replicas of Columbus’ ships, will open  in Beaufort. The ships will be docked at the Downtown Marina, until their departure early morning Tuesday May 4th.

The ‘Nina’ was built completely by hand and without the use of power tools, and was called by Archaeology magazine “ the most historically correct Columbus replica ever built.” The craftsmanship of construction and the details in the rigging make it a truly fascinating visit back to the Age of Discovery. The ‘Nina’ was used in the production of the film ‘1492’ starring Gerard Depardieu and directed by Ridley Scott.

The ‘Pinta’ was  built in Brazil to accompany the ‘Nina’  on all of her travels.  She is a larger version of the archetypal caravel and offers larger deck space for walk-aboard tours and has a 900 sq. ft. main salon down below to view slide shows of the ships’ construction.   The Pinta is available for private parties while in port.

Both ships will be touring together as a new and enhanced ‘sailing museum’ for the purpose of educating the public and school children on the ‘Caravel’, a Portuguese ship used by Columbus and many early explorers to discover the world.

While in port, the general public is invited to visit the ships for walk-aboard self-guided tours.  The prices are $7.00 for adults, $6.00 for seniors and $5.00 for children.  Children 4 and under are Free.  The ship is open every day from 9:00 – 6:00 p.m.  No reservations necessary.

Teachers or groups wishing to schedule a 30 minute guided tour with a crew member should call the ship directly at (787) 672-2152.  Minimum of 15. $4 per person.  Visit our website at www.thenina.com for additional information.  The ships arrive Wednesday April 28th and there will be a  private viewing for the media after docking.