The sun has set on round eight of 70000 Tons Of Metal - the original, the world's biggest heavy metal cruise which sailed from Miami / Fort Lauderdale, FL to Grand Turk, Turks and Caicos Islands and back on February 1st - 5th, 2018.

But preparations for round nine are underway. Next year, 70000 Tons Of Metal will sail from Miami / Ft. Lauderdale to Labadee and back on January 31st - February 4th, 2019.

A note from The Skipper reads:

"Survivors! Let me take this opportunity to thank all of you for making 70000 Tons Of Metal 2018, The Original, The World’s Biggest Heavy Metal Cruise once again such a success!

Last year we had 74 nations from around the Globe on board 70000 Tons Of Metal, and once again I truly thought there is no way we could beat that. But again you proved me wrong! This year you brought that count to 75 countries!

All you Survivors from: Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cuba, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, The Netherlands, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Pakistan, Palau, Panama, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, Trinidad And Tobago, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, Uruguay, Usa, Venezuela, and Vietnam made 70000 Tons Of Metal 2018 once again truly feel like the United Nations Of Heavy Metal At Sea!

A special Thank You to all the members of my incredible crew – you are truly the greatest in the world! Last but not least, Thank You to all the Artists and their Crew for 124 fantastic live performances including Jamming With Waters In International Waters, the Clinics, holding all the Meet & Greet and Signing Sessions and participating in all the other Special Events."

Visit the official 70000 Tons Of Metal website at this location, and be sure to check out their official Facebook page.

(Top photo courtesy of Myriam Francoeur)