By
Rebecca Gibson |
Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines’ flagship Balmoral will start her second cruise season from the Port of Tyne in Newcastle, UK on 25 May 2017.
This year, the 1,350-guest Balmoral will offer a total of 13 voyages from the port in north-east England – an increase from 11 in 2016. Destinations on the cruises will include Norway, Iceland, Spain, Germany and the Baltic.
“Fred. Olsen has over 100 years of heritage in running passenger services from the Port of Tyne, and has been operating regular cruise calls from Newcastle since 2006,” said Clare Ward, director of product and customer services for Fred. Olsen. “Since then, Fred. Olsen has seen bookings departing from the Port of Tyne soar, with our Norwegian Fjords cruises selling out in record time. “The Port of Tyne is ideally placed for our ever-popular Norway, Scandinavian and Baltic itineraries, and we can save up to three days’ cruising time sailing from Newcastle to Norway than from Southern ports.”
Highlights of Balmoral’s ex-Newcastle sailings in 2017 include a 15-night ‘Authentic Andalusia’ roundtrip will take guests to Cádiz, Malaga, Almería, Vigo and La Coruňa in Spain, as well as Gibraltar, and Lisbon in Portugal. Meanwhile, the eight-night ‘From the Highlands of Scotland to the Lizard Peninsula’ cruise will sail roundtrip from Newcastle via Oban, Scotland; Belfast, Northern Ireland; Dublin, Ireland; and Falmouth and Portland, England. Alternatively, guests can choose an 11-night ‘Scandinavian Waterways & Capitals’ voyage to Copenhagen, Denmark; Stockholm, Sweden; and Oslo, Norway.
“It is great to see Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines return with Balmoral and we hope that the continued success of our cruise operations continues to positively impact the economy,” said Nolan Gray, Port of Tyne’s business development director.