Record number of cruise ships set to sail along the Mersey
Liverpool Cruise Terminal looks set for a record breaking year in 2015 as 54 cruise ships are scheduled to berth there, bringing with them more than 80,000 international visitors to the city.
Many of these, ranging from new vessels and cruise lines will be making their inaugural calls along the Mersey to the historic port.
The undoubted highlight of the season will be two very special events to celebrate Cunard Cruise Line’s 175th anniversary. On 25 May the Cunard fleet will arrive on the Mersey, creating an unprecedented Three Queens spectacle in Liverpool and a once-in-a-lifetime event that will make maritime history.
On 4 July, the Cunard flagship Queen Mary 2 will return to Liverpool to celebrate Britannia’s transatlantic departure exactly 175 years earlier. There will be a series of events across the city celebrating the glamour and excitement of cruise travel and how an industry that was born in Liverpool changed the world culturally.
The Mayor of Liverpool, Joe Anderson, said “To have the three Cunard Queens back in their spiritual home on our beautiful waterfront will be nothing short of majestic.
“The growth of cruise calls is driven by a combination of factors, predominantly our city centre location and the sheer choice of quality experiences on the doorstep and in the surrounding region. This has again been underlined with Liverpool being named by the industry as the UK Port of Call for the second year in succession.
“I am absolutely delighted that Liverpool is once again making its mark as a great maritime destination.”
Angie Redhead, Liverpool Cruise and Operations Manager, said: “Our World class hospitality has ensured Liverpool is a firm favourite with international passenger along with the fantastic city wide support network behind our cruise operation.
“This is very important in a competitive industry where there are no second chances and a lot of destinations are vying for cruise business.”
Among the large cruise liners making their Mersey debut in 2015 will be the new P&O Britannia, Royal Princess, Mein Schiff 4, Celebrity Silhouette and the Spanish Pullmantur Horizon.
In the smaller ship category there are some exclusive lines calling for the first time such as the Le Boreal and le Soleal from Ponant, a French group and Marina and Nautica from the Oceania Cruise Line. 2015 will also see a more diverse group of different nationalities than ever before.
The 2014 season saw visits from 50 vessels, bringing in 57,844 passengers with a boost in to the local economy of around £4.49m.
To celebrate the success of 2014, a special showreel has been made giving an insight into life at the Cruise Liner Terminal and the experience of passengers travelling to the city. This can be viewed at www.cruise-liverpool.com/sunrise-to-sunset/
To top off a fantastic and successful year Cruise Critic.com, the cruise arm Trip Advisor and the most influential consumer review website in the cruise industry worldwide, awarded Liverpool ‘UK Port of Call 2014’. This is the second year running Liverpool has scooped the title.
Next year will also see the return of Regent’s Seven Seas Voyager who was in fact the very first ship to call to the newly constructed cruise terminal on 9th September 2007.
For more information on which ships are calling and when, please go to www.cruise-liverpool.com/cruise-call-schedule.
