Cruise and Maritime Veteran Wilkin Mes Joins Princess Cruises as Vice President of Port Operations

Wilkin Mes – a longtime veteran of the cruise and maritime industries with extensive experience in terminal management, logistics and cruise services – has been named Vice President of Port Operations for Princess Cruises.

Prior to joining Princess, Mes spent the past three years at Ceres Terminals, most recently as Senior Vice President – Cruise Strategy Development where among his accomplishments included helping to develop the new Terminal 10 at the Port of Galveston. He also improved the company’s business processes and marketability of their stevedoring and terminal management services, as well as developed plans for a multi-faceted cruise services platform.

Mes began his maritime career with Holland America Line as a deck officer and transferred to the company’s shoreside offices in Seattle as manager of human resources, responsible for the planning and scheduling of the fleet’s deck and engine officers. He also held roles in marine operations and itinerary planning at Holland America Line.

Mes then moved to Metro Cruise Services, working in a variety of roles, including Regional Manager for Southern California, overseeing cruise stevedoring and management of terminal facilities in Los Angeles and was part of the team responsible for enhancements that allowed for the accommodation of larger cruise vessels. These improvements garnered the recognition of Princess Cruises which named Los Angeles as their “Port of the Year.”

He later joined Carnival Cruise Line where he had day-to-day oversight of the Long Beach Cruise Terminal as well as the cruise line’s national stevedoring contracts.  As Director of the Long Beach Terminal, he oversaw a significant expansion of the facility which grew from a one-way terminal to an architecturally attractive and operationally highly efficient facility, able to accommodate the company’s largest vessels.

A native of the Netherlands, Mes earned a bachelor’s degree in marine transportation with an emphasis on navigation and a minor in engineering from the HZ University of Applied Sciences.

“We’re delighted that someone of Wilkin’s caliber has joined the Princess Cruises maritime organization,” said Stefano Borzone, Princess’ Senior Vice President - Global Port Operations and Development. “His wide-ranging experience, combined with his collaborative and solutions-oriented approach, will be instrumental in implementing key operational strategies and associated initiatives going forward.”