Tag Archives: Northern Europe

Viking Passengers Rate Kirkwall Top Destination in Northern Europe

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Viking Star in Orkney

Viking Ocean Cruises passengers have rated Kirkwall as their top Northern Europe and Scandinavian cruise destination.

The rating was based on guest feedback following analysis of 2018 itineraries, according to a statement the Orkney Islands Council.

Kirkwall has been rated top destination from a total portfolio of 46 Northern Europe and Scandinavian destinations from Viking.

“Viking Ocean Cruises are one of our most regular cruise lines calling into Kirkwall and their outstanding vessels are a corner stone of our local cruise industry,” said Michael Morrison, the Council’s Business Development Manager for Marine Services. “For their guests to rate us so highly is indeed an accolade that all of us who deliver the marine tourism product in Orkney can be truly proud of. To receive a higher level of customer satisfaction that destinations such as Copenhagen and St. Petersburg  is indeed a tremendous achievement  Kirkwall is the UK’s cruise destination capital and this endorsement from Viking Cruises will motivate Team Orkney to continue to deliver the high quality of destination experience that Orkney is so very good at.”

The 2019 Orkney season has 170 port calls planned compared to 140 booked for 2018. Bookings for 2020 are encouraging as well, with over 100 calls already scheduled.

This year will see growth in smaller vessels calling, with 71 calls scheduled from ships with under 500 guests.

Blohm+Voss: Planning Meticulous Work

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The Europa 2 at Blohm + Voss (Photo: Oliver Asmussen)
Europa 2 in the Drydock.

“Planning a refit project is a precise art and to pull it off with a happy customer at the end takes months of meticulous preparation,” said Dieter Dehlke, managing director, Blohm+Voss.

“We can have projects on the books a year or more in advance or we can get a call for an emergency repair just weeks or even days before it is due to dock with us,” he said.

The German yard offers seven drydocks and is among the leading options for cruise ship repair in Northern Europe.

For the bigger jobs, it is not uncommon for the yard to manage some 3,500 workers.

They also offer what they call flying squads, groups of skilled workers that can carry out refits anywhere.

“If the ship can’t make it to the yard, we send the team to the ship,” said Dehlke.

Celebrity Cruises to base ship in Dublin

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Image result for celebrity solstice photos

Irish travel agents will have a dedicated ship to sell when Celebrity Cruises becomes the first major cruise line base a ship in Dublin.

One of the line’s 2,800-plus passenger Solstice-class vessels will run five sailings from the Irish capital’s port between April and June 2018.

Itineraries will run throughout northern Europe with details to be announced later in the year.

The line expects to attract more than 14,000 passengers to the Dublin sailings.

The move is estimated to be worth almost €6 million to Dublin and the surrounding area in knock-on economic benefits.

Celebrity Cruises already features Dublin and other ports throughout Ireland in its European deployment.

However this is the most significant increase in its investment into Ireland in the history of the global business.

UK and Ireland managing director Jo Rzymowska said: “Celebrity Cruises has enjoyed significant support from our travel agent partners and guests throughout Ireland for many years.

“Now we are saying thank you by basing one of the flagships of our fleet in Dublin for a mini season during early summer 2018.

“We know that our guests from around the world, and in Ireland, will love the warm welcome they receive when starting a holiday in Dublin.

“Calling Dublin home in 2018 is a major development to our European deployment.”

Dublin Port has hosted more than 180,000 cruise visitors on over 100 cruise ship calls this year, including four turnarounds where the ship begins its sailing and guests embark.

Head of corporate services Pat Ward said: “It has been a clear ambition of Dublin Port to attract a cruise line to offer our great city as a homeport.

“Today, that ambition is realised and Celebrity Cruises will be an important step-change in our history.

“The opportunities that this new investment will bring are extensive. We look forward to maximising this new platform for growth and welcoming yet more cruise ships and holidaymakers to Dublin for the first time.”