Wednesday, January 13, 2016 - 11:12 by cherbourg
2015 cruise season in Cherbourg was eventful and busy, punctuated by unexpected, inaugurals, double, overnights calls! This year offered us the opportunity to welcome 28 cruise ships, totalizing 36544 cruise guests and 15370 crew members.
Statistics shows that 68% of the passengers in transit came from Europe (for most from United Kingdom), 26% from North America, 6% from other continents.
9228 cruise guests opted for full-day or half-day shore excursions from the Port of Cherbourg.
2015 Best Sellers are: 1: The Normandy D-day Landing Beaches and Sites. 2: The scenic Saire Valley. 3: The Mont Saint Michel.
We can note that 27316 passengers decided to stay, visiting the town of Cherbourg and its area.
We have had the chance to welcome 10 inaugural calls: the SAGA SAPPHIRE, OCEAN NOVA, SERENADE OF THE SEAS, MSC SINFONIA, AZORES, COSTA FORTUNA, MSC ORCHESTRA, OCEAN PRINCESS, MAGELLAN and the VENTURA. As usual when a ship call for the first time in Cherbourg, a welcoming ceremony is organized on board with the captain and the representatives of the port and town.
Cherbourg is strategically located on the tip of the Normandy Peninsula, well positioned along the English Channel and protected by the largest artificial breakwaters of the world. The port is also known as a prefect welcoming port in case of bad weather conditions. Hence, Cherbourg received this year 4 unexpected cruise calls for one day and 5 cruise ships decided to stay overnight, because of the rough sea.
Once again, the Port of Cherbourg is considered as a turnaround destination with two embarking dates in 2015: The 3rd of September on the Costa Fortuna and the 11th of September, aboard the Costa Pacifica. 553 passengers in total boarded from Cherbourg Cruise Terminal towards the Mediterranean seas.
2015 in figures:
28 calls
36544 cruise guests
15370 crew members
9228 passengers on shore excursions
553 embarking passengers
3 double calls
10 inaugural calls
4 unexpected and 5 overnight calls
2016 CRUISE SEASON FORECASTS
2016 cruise season promises to be excellent with a total of 24 calls and a maximum of 60 000 visitors.
To date, 10 inaugural calls are expected: The OVATION OF THE SEAS the 18th and 28th of April, the REGAL PRINCESS the 27th of April, the ZUIDERDAM the 1st of May, the VIKING STAR the 3rd of May, the COSTA FAVOLOSA the 23rd of May, the HARMONY OF THE SEAS the 27th of May, the NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC ORION the 3rd of June, the AZAMARA QUEST the 11th of September, the MSC MUSICA the 14th of September.
A double call is planned on the 3rd of May: the Viking Star will berthed at the Quai de France and the MSC Opera at the Quai de Normandie.
In 2016, Cherbourg will receive not less than 11 ‘Giants of the Seas’ (with a capacity of over 3000 passengers) : The VENTURA (3597 pax max), the OVATION OF THE SEAS (4905 pax max), the REGAL PRINCESS (36074 pax max), the COSTA FAVOLOSA (4196 pax max), the HARMONY OF THE SEAS (6360 pax max), the INDEPENDENCE OF THE SEAS (4375 pax max), the MSC MUSICA (3605 pax max), the CELEBRITY ECLIPSE (3013 pax max), the AZURA (3597 pax max)!
2016 will be marked by the return of the Cunard Line Company in our port with the call of the QUEEN ELIZABETH on the 2nd of October. The last time we saw her in Cherbourg was the 21st of June 2012.
The most waited event of the year will absolutely be the call of the brand new vessel of Royal Caribbean Cruise Line: the HARMONY OF THE SEAS. The biggest cruise ship of the world (with a capacity of 6360 passengers) will dock the 27 of May, on the occasion of her 3 nights cruise. Cherbourg will be the first French port the ship will meet… Bienvenue!
To put it in a nutshell, a rich and eventful new year is announced for cruise industry in Cherbourg!
