(MENAFN- Muscat Daily) MSC Lirica, the Italian cruise liner is returning to Oman and the GCC after it pulled out from the region at the end of its first season in 2012.
The ship will home port in Dubai this time as against Abu Dhabi and will visit Muscat and Khasab 20 and 18 times, respectively. She will visit Salalah twice until March.
The cruise arrived in Salalah on Tuesday morning from Italy via Egypt and Jordan. She will call on Port Sultan Qaboos on November 21, where a special ceremony has been planned by the Ministry of Tourism.
The itinerary during the time in the Middle East includes eight-day, seven-night cruises from Dubai between November 23 and March 29, 2014, calling on Abu Dhabi, Khor al Fakkan, Muscat and Khasab, with an overnight stay in Dubai. The only change in the itinerary this time is Khor al Fakkan, while it was Fujairah last time.
''MSC Cruises' return to the Emirates reaffirms our strong belief in the region's potential as an innovative and highly desirable destination for cruise travellers,'' said Pierfrancesco Vago, CEO, MSC Cruises. ''As part of a broad commitment to encourage future growth, the UAE government's recent decision to allow multiple entry visas for cruise ship passengers has dramatically simplified procedures, making the region even more attractive for cruise lines.''
The change in visa fees in Oman has also helped the cruise sector. In 2012, the free visa period was extended to 48 hours from the earlier 24 for cruise passengers and crew.
And for stay over 48 hours and less than ten days, the visa fee is RO5 per person. Earlier, the RO5 visa fee was for duration from over 24 hours to 96 hours.
While MSC Lirica starts new innings, global cruise operator Royal Caribbean pulled its ship out of Dubai and the region after the 2013 season (end of April), where it operated Serenade of the Seas, on seven-night cruises out of Dubai to Fujairah, Abu Dhabi and Muscat.
Helen Beck, Royal Caribbean, regional director, said demand had declined in the Emirate in recent seasons.
''We were initially very pleased with the business development there and expected continued growth. However, the demand has declined in recent seasons and as a result we have had to make some difficult decisions, driven by strategic and financial considerations, about discontinuing our programme there,'' she was quoted earlier by the Seatrade Cruise Review.
The winter cruise season in the sultanate began with the arrival of Seabourn Odyssey at Salalah Port on October 26, and the ship visited Port Sultan Qaboos on October 28. The vessel returned to Oman, visiting Khasab on October 31.
The season ahead looks promising as major cruise liners are expected to call on the ports of Oman, among them the prestigious Queen Marie 2 which docks at Muscat on April 22, 2014.
The three ships that make regular port calls in Oman during the season are Costa neoRivera, Costa Fortuna, both of which will come to Oman about 11 times each, and AIDAdiva, which will be making 17 port calls. While Costa Fortuna will be visiting on one-week cruises from December 20 to March 21, 2014, from Dubai with an overnight stopover at Muscat and further port calls at Khasab and Abu Dhabi, Costa neoRivera will be offering a brand new one-week itinerary called ‘The Emirates in style' (November 24 to February 2, 2014), with overnight stopovers at each of three the ports, Dubai, Muscat and Abu Dhabi.
PORT TRAFFIC
In 2012, PSQ saw an 8 per cent increase in number of passengers handled over 2011. The port received 111 cruise calls and served 183,449 passengers in 2012. From January to March 2013, the port received 64 cruise vessels.
Salalah Port expects an average of approximately 30 cruise ships and over 25,000 tourists to come through the port in 2013. It saw a slight increase in port calls in 2012 over 2011, with 33 cruise vessels over 29 in 2011. The number of passengers handled were 28,159 in 2012 and 23,202 in 2011. Till March 2013, Port of Salalah received 11 port calls and handled 8,844 passengers.&nb
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.