2008 cruise season launch

CELEBRITY LINER ARRIVAL KICKS OFF BUSIEST EVER CRUISE SEASON

The 2008 Belfast Cruise season has kicked off with the arrival of the Celebrity Cruises vessel, The Constellation, into the Port of Belfast.

The Constellation is one of a record 39 cruise ships scheduled to visit the city this year as a result of the work carried out by the Belfast Cruise Initiative, a partnership between the Port of Belfast and the Belfast Visitor and Convention Bureau (BVCB).

Welcoming the 91,000 tonne vessel and its 3,030 passengers and crew to the city, the Lord Mayor of Belfast Councillor Jim Rodgers said,

“It is always a great pleasure to greet cruise visitors as they step off a liner and prepare to explore the city and surrounding areas.  In talking to visitors you get a wonderful sense of how excited they are to be here, whether it is their first trip to Belfast or, as increasingly happens, they are regular visitors to the city.  I believe that it is a mark of how far we have developed as a tourism destination in recent years that we have seen the number of cruise visitors increase to its current impressive level.”

By the time the final cruise ship docks at the end of the season in November, around 65,000 passengers and crew will have visited the city bringing approximately £15 million in tourism revenue.  Susie McCullough, marketing director of BVCB stresses that it is not only the quantity of ships coming into the city that is important, but also the standard of the vessels themselves.

“Belfast is developing into a must see destination on the European cruise calendar,” said Susie, “with some of the world’s most prestigious ships visiting us.  Not only are we welcoming liners from leading companies such as Celebrity Cruises, but this year, we will also be bringing in the QE2 on 4 October as part of her farewell tour before she docks permanently in Dubai at the end of next year.  The fact that we can win such important visits is a measure of how highly-regarded our cruise programme has become and the interest that holidaymakers have in visiting the city,” she added.

Joe O’Neill, commercial director at the Port of Belfast shares this view.

“With our busiest ever cruise season just beginning, Belfast will be welcoming some of the world’s largest commercial liners, including the world-famous QE2.  The Port of Belfast and BVCB are working hard to deliver an outstanding experience for visitors and as part of that process the Port is investing £10m to extend its main cruise liner berth by 250m, enhancing access for cruise vessels by creating the longest deep-water berth in Ireland.  It is very gratifying to those of us working at the Port of Belfast to welcome new vessels that have never before come into Belfast as well as facilitating a number of return visits by companies such as Celebrity Cruises.”

Allison Offor, head of corporate relations at Diageo, BVCB’s strategic partner, is not surprised that Belfast has become such a popular stop for cruise visitors.

“With so much development in the last year including the addition of tourism attractions such as the Belfast Wheel, new bars, hotels and restaurants and of course the opening of Victoria Square, it is little wonder that Belfast has firmly established itself on the international tourist trail.  It is exciting to see so many cruise ships come into Belfast, particularly as it will bring a large injection of revenue not only for Belfast but for the rest of Northern Ireland as well.  As we celebrate 400 years of whiskey making heritage in the Bushmills area this year, we expect a further rise in visitor numbers to the world famous distillery and I am delighted that we at Diageo can support such an important aspect of the tourism mix through our strategic partnership of BVCB.

BVCB is a public/private partnership funded by Belfast City Council, NITB, and the private sector and is sponsored by Diageo NI.