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Anonym |
This article was first published in the Autumn/Winter 2017 issue of International Cruise & Ferry Review. All information was correct at the time of printing, but may since have changed.
Dublin Port Company has been the driving force behind the development of cruise tourism to Dublin since the company first began targeting the business over 30 years ago. Since then, Dublin has emerged as a much sought-after port of call on passenger itineraries, attracting household names in the industry and becoming a marquee destination on the itineraries of the world’s leading cruise lines.
Indeed, Dublin Port Company has welcomed maiden calls by MSC Cruises’ MSC Splendida, Holland America Line, Disney Cruise Line, and Celebrity Cruises’ Celebrity Eclipse in recent years. Dublin also remains a very popular destination for Princess Cruises. This season will see the port welcome some 130 cruise ships, bringing over 200,000 visitors to the city. The upward trend has never been more evident, and builds on four consecutive years of rising cruise tourism passenger figures to the capital.
As a port city, Dublin has an abundance of history and heritage, arts and entertainment, retail and gastronomy experiences to offer port of call passengers, and this in turn has proven attractive for the homeporting market. With homeporting on the rise, turnaround passengers bring with them a new set of needs and opportunities for both the port and the city.
We expect homeporting passengers will spend days either side of their itinerary exploring Dublin and the surrounding areas. With more free time, homeporting has strong potential to benefit both the city and regional economies, and our proximity to Dublin Airport facilitates this.
Homeporting will undoubtedly require additional bed nights in the city. Therein lies the challenge – to plan now for sufficient five-star hotel accommodation that will serve a premium market as it matures, and the opportunity to capitalise on proven passenger appetite for Dublin as a homeport.
Celebrity Cruise’s decision to base a number of Celebrity Eclipse turnarounds in Dublin next year is testament to that, and with passenger demand driving itinerary planning, the signs from the industry are clear that the future is bright for homeporting at Dublin Port.