Royal Caribbean to further expand in Europe
Royal Caribbean International is to further expand in Europe as cruising becomes a more popular holiday choice.
The company’s chairman Richard Fain, speaking prior to the UK naming on Wednesday of the line’s biggest ship Independence of the Seas, said he believed cruising was beginning to reach a “critical mass†in Europe as more people use word of mouth to recommend newcomers to the concept.
He denied that the US economic downturn was influencing decisions to deploy more vessels in Europe, saying that long term business decisions had to be made irrespective of the financial climate.
Fain said that interest in Europe is going to continue to grow due to the dramatic rise in cruise passengers being sourced from the region.
The company expects that more than 60,000 passengers will sail on 3,600-passenger Independence of the Seas in its first summer season departing from Southampton to the Mediterranean, Canary Islands and Ireland.
The port of Southampton is projected to handle more than 900,000 passengers based on 280 cruise ships calls this year as total UK cruise numbers are forecast to hit 1.55 million.
Besides ex-UK sailings, Royal Caribbean is operating a range of fly-cruises in Europe across its brands this summer and is poised to unveil further details of its joint venture in Germany with TUI AG to target German-speaking passengers.
by Phil Davies
Phil Davies
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