South Africa’s highly anticipated cruise season is set to kick off in November and Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) announced that it will return to southern African waters with an expanded offering of African sailings.
According to the luxury cruise line, travellers can look forward to itineraries on two vessels, Norwegian Dawn and Norwegian Sky, on her South African maiden voyage this coming cruise season.
Kevin Bubolz, VP and Managing Director Continental Europe, Middle East, and Africa said NCL has numerous itineraries, spanning 11 – 21 days, to set sail between November 2024 and May 2025, with departures in either Cape Town, South Africa, or Port Louis, Mauritius.
He highlighted that these itineraries are set to become popular amongst South Africans, particularly due to the absence of long-haul flights and the opportunity to travel more cost-effectively – seeing multiple destinations for the price of one.
“Travellers have the chance to explore more of southern Africa, combined with a beach holiday in Mauritius (which remains South Africans’ top international travel destination) once their cruise comes to an end.
“Alternatively, travellers can fly to Mauritius first and return home via one of our cruises, visiting Reunion, Madagascar, Mozambique, and other beautiful ports along the SA coast before disembarking in Cape Town,” said Bubolz.
NCL’s expanded offerings are well-timed, coinciding with Cape Town’s increased focus on attracting and accommodating more cruise ships.
According to Travis Stedman, Business Development Manager of Cruise Cape Town, the city has experienced significant growth in cruise tourism since 2022.
“The 2022-2023 cruise season saw 70 ships docking at the Cape Town Cruise Terminal, bringing in approximately 145,000 total passengers and 42,000 crew members.
“The 2023-2024 economic impact study results are to be released in the upcoming months,” said Stedman.
Stedman noted that Cruise Cape Town’s vision for the future of tourism focuses on establishing the city and the broader Western Cape as a premier global cruise destination with the City of Cape Town aiming to use its natural beauty, cultural heritage, and strategic location to attract more cruise liners.
“The ‘Cruise Cape Town’ initiative, led by Wesgro and other key stakeholders, is central to this vision, emphasising sustainable growth, economic development, and global competitiveness,” added Stedman.
He also added that Cruise Cape Town has also set ambitious goals for increasing the number of cruise ship calls and passenger arrivals and these goals include growing the number of cruise visits, boosting the tourism economy, creating jobs, and increasing cruise tourism’s overall GDP contribution.
“Crucial action that needs to be taken to help us achieve these goals includes infrastructure development, streamlining immigration processes, and enhancing regional promotion efforts,” said Stedman.