A record cruise season for Belfast Harbour this year saw 158 calls as reported by Cruise Belfast, the partnership between the port and Visit Belfast which markets the city as a leading destination.

The announcement was made as the final cruise ship to call to Belfast this year, Fred Olsen Cruise Line’s Borealis berthed on Saturday. Due to adverse weather, the 61, 849 gross tonnes cruise ship which was to have arrived the day before, was however rescheduled to the next morning according to Belfast Harbour on social media. This took place, as Afloat can confirm the 1,353 (standard occupancy) capacity Borealis berthed after 10.30hrs with the day visit lasting until the early evening as the ship departed just after 1900hrs. 

Borealis brings to 57 ships in total calling to Belfast this cruise season and from 32 different cruise operators, carrying 320,000 passengers and crew, who received a customary warm welcome. Among them were 14 ships which made their inaugural calls.

The total of 158 calls made by cruise vessels during the 2023 season marked an 8% increase on the pre-pandemic record set in 2019. On board, passenger capacities have increased to an average of around 90% per vessel.

With increased passenger numbers, and more visitors arriving into Belfast to experience the tourism offerings across Northern Ireland, Cruise Belfast estimates that more than £20m was injected into the local economy through passenger spend alone.

This year also marked the arrival of the 2 millionth cruise visitor to Belfast Harbour since the first cruise ship called to Belfast in 1996. The milestone passenger arrived onboard the Norwegian Dawn, operated by the Norwegian Cruise Line in May this year.

A further indication of the city’s growing status in the cruise industry, Belfast has also begun to facilitate a number of cruise turnarounds during the year, the largest of which saw 1,200 US passengers from the Oceania Riviera ending their holiday in Belfast and a further 1,200 starting their trip in the city.

This season more than 90 cruise ships will call to Dún Laoghaire Harbour bringing a total of 164,000 passengers and 71,000 crew to the area

With 44% of passengers* who tender ashore visiting Dún Laoghaire Town and the surrounding area, the cruise industry is generating significant income and creating a range of job opportunities. The benefits of these cruises extend beyond the immediate tourism sector, contributing to the restoration of the historic Harbour.

Councillor Mary Hanafin, Cathaoirleach, Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council said: “This is a very exciting time for Dun Laoghaire with thousands of visitors arriving in cruise ships. The DLR Cruise Tourism Kiosk is open daily to offer advice on local attractions, while the Dun Laoghaire Business Association operates a souvenir shop for passengers. The benefits of these cruises extend further with job creation in various roles such as tourist cabin, security staff, and Tender escort boats”.

Dún Laoghaire Harbour was the second busiest Harbour in Ireland for Cruise visits last year (65 in total) second only to Cork/Cobh** and the aim is to continue to build on this success for the years ahead.

Frank Curran, Chief Executive, Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council highlighted: “The significant income generated from the cruise ships contributes to the restoration and repair of the 200-year-old Harbour and to future plans which include a national Water Sports Campus”.

Norwegian Cruise Lines will top the schedule with 20 visits to Dun Laoghaire this year, followed by Viking Cruise Lines who will visit 17 times. (Afloat adds for a full list of cruise callers this season, click here). 

Gabby Mallon of dlr Chamber added: “We are thrilled to collaborate with Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council promoting Dún Laoghaire as an attractive shopping destination for the influx of International Cruise ship tourists, expected to arrive this year”.

Kyron O’Gorman from the local Powerboat School who tender in the passengers from the cruise liners highlighted:

“Our staff are early risers, waiting for the next cruise ship to come over the horizon and ready to tender them ashore. This greatly expands our marine sector in the county, creating 40 mariner sessional jobs on the water and much more ashore”.

Cruise Statistics for 2023

• The combined passenger and crew complement exceeds the population of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown by nearly 1k.
• The 2023 cruise season surpasses last year when 65 cruise ships arrived with 79,000 passengers and 44,000 crew.
• At 333m, the longest cruise ship will be ‘MSC Preziosa’ which has a gross tonnage of 139,072t and a capacity for 4,345 passengers 1,313 crew. In a very close second place, is the ‘Regal Princess’ at 330m long. With a capacity for 3,592 passengers 1,205 crew. These enormous cruise ships are operated by MSC Cruises and Princess Cruises respectively. Both will be regular callers this year, ‘MSC Preziosa’ calling twice and ’Regal Princess’ calling 11 times.
• Norwegian Cruise Lines are once again top of the schedule with frequent visits to Dun Laoghaire 20 times this year.
• Viking Cruises will visit 17 times this year sending 7 different ships from their ocean going fleet.

The Isle of Man is to welcome cruise passengers and generate around £1.7m to the island's economy in what will be a record year in the number of ships calling.

The Manx Government's Department for Enterprise says it's expecting 18,000 visitors to come ashore from 59 cruise liners this summer, with the first passengers arriving on the Hurtigruten's 'Spitsbergen' this Sunday.

With almost 60 ships booked to visit the Island in 2023, it's set to be a record year for the sector and surpasses the previous record of 47 ships which visited in 2019.

The Non-executive chair of Visit Isle of Man, Ranald Caldwell, explained on Manx Radio on what the industry brings to the Island. Click the link to listen to an audio-piece.

For a list of cruise calls is available here to download.

Of the callers, Afloat adds that Holland America Lines Nieuw Statendam which is due in August, will be the largest visitor, carrying approximately 2,660 passengers and 1,025 crew.

The Isle of Man has six locations where cruise ships this season will make a call by visiting a port or take anchorage with passengers tendered ashore.

The six locations are Douglas Harbour, Douglas Bay, Peel, Peel Bay, Port St. Mary and the Calf of Man, an island off the south-west coast.

#cruiseliners - A total 285,000 visitors on board 151 cruise ships are due to call at Belfast Harbour this year, an increase of 31% on the 115 visits during the 2018 cruise season.

The figures were announced by Cruise Belfast, the partnership between Belfast Harbour and Visit Belfast.

According to Cruise Belfast, July will be the busiest month with 32 ships scheduled to call among them SAGA’s first ever newbuild vessel Spirit of Discovery. Other first time callers to Belfast this year include Disney Magic and Cruise & Maritime Voyages which acquired a ship and renamed Vasco da Gama.

In total 35 separate cruise lines will call at Belfast, the most frequent being CMV with 15 calls scheduled and Princess Cruises set at 13 calls. 

The Italian-based Costa Line will also call at Belfast for the first time while the number of calls from Celebrity will double to eight. Norwegian Cruise Line is expanding its visits from one in 2018 to eleven calls as part of its strategic growth plans for the northern European market.

#CruiseLiners - It was a record-breaking cruise season that officially ended yesterday when the Fred Olsen-owned Black Watch (docked) in the Port of Belfast.

As The Irish News reports this was the 115th ship to dock in 2018, and since the arrival of the Portuguese-registered Astoria in mid-March, some 185,00 passengers and crew have spilled out into the city's shops, restaurants and tourist attractions.

Cruise Belfast, the partnership between Belfast Harbour and Visit Belfast, confirmed that the city has been named as one of Europe’s most popular cruise destinations by Cruise Critic, the world’s largest online cruise community, boosting 350,000 reviews covering 500 cruise ships and 300 global ports.

Cruise Critic chose Belfast a one of the winners of its third annual Cruisers’ Choice Destination Awards, which are based entirely on consumer ratings.

For more on the story click here in addition Afloat adds the 900 passenger /423 cabin cruiseship sailed overnight and is this morning docked at Liverpool Cruise Terminal.