Belfast is looking forward to 130 calls this season



Monday, April 18, 2022 - 11:06 by ce-press

Following two challenging years for tourism in Northern Ireland, the team at Belfast Harbour is thrilled to have 130 cruise vessel calls booked for arrival in 2022. “This busy cruise schedule signals an increase in customer confidence in travel and will be a welcome economic boost to the local tourism industry in the region,” says Gary Hall, commercial executive Belfast Harbour.

The arrival of Viking Venus on her inaugural call to Belfast on April 1 marked the beginning of what is hoped will be a record-breaking cruise season for Cruise Belfast, the partnership between Belfast Harbour and Visit Belfast.

More than 50 different vessels from 33 cruiselines are booked to dock in the city throughout 2022, with up to 340,000 visitors expected to come ashore to experience Northern Ireland’s attractions, which include Titanic Belfast; the Giant’s Causeway UNESCO World Heritage Site; and a variety of award-winning restaurants and bars.

The cruise season, which will run from April to November this year, will also see 18 ships calling at Belfast for the first time, including new British brand Ambassador’s Ambassador Ambience and Princess Cruises calling with Enchanted Princess and Island Princess.

Belfast Harbour’s port director, Michael Robinson, says: “The development of cruise tourism has been a major success story for Northern Ireland’s tourism sector. Its continued growth is due, in no small part, to the close collaboration of key industry and local partners, working together to develop a high-quality visitor experience.

“In October last year we celebrated a significant milestone, welcoming the 1,000th cruise call to Belfast Harbour and marking an incredible 1.7 million cruise visitors to the city since the first cruise ship arrived in Belfast in 1996.

“We fully expect that this year’s season will further enhance Belfast’s and the wider region’s reputation as a must-visit cruise destination.”

And Mary Jo McCanny, director of visitor servicing at Visit Belfast, comments on the hope for this year’s cruise season: “The tourism investment, that brought an increasing number of international and first-time visitors here before Covid, placed Belfast in a really good position to safely welcome cruise visitors back to Northern Ireland last summer.

“We expect to exceed our 2019 cruise passenger numbers this season, which is a testament to the quality of our visitor experiences, the strong working relationships Cruise Belfast has with global cruise operators and the warmth of the visitor services teams.”
Belfast is looking forward to 130 calls this season
Viking Venus arrives in Belfast (c) Belfast Harbour


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