Becoming a member of the ranks of sizzling locations breaking passenger information in 2024, the United Arab Emirates noticed great development in Dubai.
Between January and November 2024, its Port Rashid and Dubai Harbour welcomed 187 vessels and 281,775 cruise friends, dealing with over 1.23 million luggage.
Dubai Customs reported the figures, emphasizing its ongoing efforts to reinforce operations at cruise terminals, strengthen Dubai’s place within the trade, and entice extra cruise ships.
“We’re dedicated to supporting Dubai’s rising tourism sector by way of a strategic imaginative and prescient that focuses on delivering environment friendly, state-of-the-art customized companies, guaranteeing a seamless journey expertise for passengers arriving by air or sea,” mentioned Khalid Ahmed, director of the passenger operations division.
Ahmed says the port additionally helps the Dubai Financial Agenda D33, which was introduced in January 2023 with collection of objectives to attain by 2033. These objectives embrace positioning Dubai as a number one cruise hub and to attract a city-wide tourism complete of 25 million vacationers yearly.
Added Falah Al Sammak, senior supervisor of passenger operations at Al Maktoum Worldwide Airport, “Dubai Customs is frequently growing its companies to make sure clean and environment friendly journey by way of its customs checkpoints, together with Dubai Worldwide Airport and town’s famend maritime hubs.”
“Dubai’s distinctive place as a bridge between East and West requires distinctive year-round service requirements for travellers and vacationers,” he mentioned.
Port Rashid and Dubai Harbour anticipates one other record-breaking yr in 2025, and Ahmed says Dubai Customs takes “pleasure in being an integral a part of Dubai’s international achievements in tourism and journey.”
Dubai Sees Continued Progress and Growth
With yet another month left in 2024, the cruise visitors to Dubai continues, with a number of calls all through the month from Costa’s 5,224-passenger Costa Smeralda, Norwegian Cruise Line’s 2,340-guest Norwegian Daybreak, MSC Cruises’ 4,838-passenger MSC Euribia, and AIDA Cruises’ 3,300-guest AIDAprima.
The truth is, quite a lot of cruise traces have dedicated to return to the port sooner or later, corresponding to TUI Cruises, which signed a two-year settlement to spend two cruise seasons in Dubai final March.
Its 2,506-passenger Mein Schiff 4 is among the common guests nonetheless stopping on the port this month, and would be the first vessel to name in 2025 when it arrives on January 2 throughout a 7-night Orient Ab Abu Dhabi voyage.
The Greek-based Celestyal Cruises has additionally dedicated to a long-term presence on the port, homeporting its 1,260-guest Celestyal Journey for the subsequent three winter seasons.
The ship started its inaugural winter sailings on December 9, 2024, providing week-long winter “Desert Days” itineraries by way of March 2025. The ship is scheduled to return yearly by way of 2029.
Resorts World One, operated by Resorts World Cruises, can also be homeporting in Dubai by way of April 13, 2025. The 1,800-passenger ship is providing 2- and 3-night cruises to Sir Bani Yas, Khasab, Muscat, and Doha.
However these usually are not the one cruise traces seeing an elevated presence in Dubai. Royal Caribbean, Norwegian Cruise Line, Cunard, Princess Cruises, Movie star Cruises, Silversea Cruises, and MSC Cruises are seeing extra passengers keen to go to the Persian Gulf.
The Hamdan bin Mohammed Cruise Terminal at Port Rashid, unveiled a decade in the past on December 11, 2014, stands as the biggest single, coated cruise terminal, on the earth. It’s designed to accommodate as much as 14,000 passengers every day.
With a capability to host seven cruise ships and as much as 25,000 passengers concurrently, the port is at present including a brand new waterfront leisure space to additional improve customer experiences.
The $6.8-billion Mina Rashid Redevelopment challenge will add a 3-acre seaside, a floating yacht membership, a swimming pool stretching 1,640 ft, and a brand new Dubai Mall by the Sea, outfitted with eating and leisure points of interest.
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