Belfast Harbour is expecting to welcome 130 cruise ships during the 2022 season, including 18 first time visitors.
Cruise Belfast, the partnership between Belfast Harbour and Visit Belfast which markets Belfast as a leading cruise ship destination, has announced that more than 50 different vessels from 33 cruise lines are booked to dock in the city throughout 2022.
Up to 340,000 visitors are expected to come ashore to experience Northern Ireland’s award-winning tourist attractions.
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The cruise season, which will run from April to November this year, will see 18 new ships calling to the shores of Belfast for the first time, including ‘Ambassador Ambience,’ from new British cruise line, Ambassador, and Princess Cruises calling with its ships Enchanted Princess and Island Princess.
Michael Robinson, Belfast Harbour’s Port Director, said: “Following two challenging years for tourism, the team at Belfast Harbour is thrilled to have 130 cruise vessels booked for arrival at our Port in 2022.
“This busy cruise schedule signals an increase in customer confidence in travel and will be a welcome economic boost to the local tourism industry.
“The team is also looking forward to welcoming 18 ships for their inaugural call to these shores, which will further enhance Belfast’s and the wider region’s reputation as a must-visit cruise destination.
“Following the safe and successful resumption of cruise tourism last year, we continue to work with public health agencies and the cruise lines to implement safety protocols to ensure the wellbeing of all visitors and staff.
“As restrictions are eased, the team will review our procedures in line with government guidelines, with safety remaining our highest priority.”
Mary Jo McCanny, Director of Visitor Servicing at Visit Belfast, added: “The tourism investment that brought an increasing number of international and first-time visitors here before Covid, placed Belfast in a really good position to safely welcome cruise visitors back to Northern Ireland last summer.
“We expect to exceed our 2019 cruise passenger numbers this season, which is a testament to the quality of our visitor experiences, the strong working relationships Cruise Belfast has with global cruise operators and the warmth of the visitor services teams.
“The partnership between Belfast Harbour and Visit Belfast and on-going support from Tourism NI enables us to provide both shore-side and on-board visitor information services, ensuring a first-class welcome is available to passengers as soon as they arrive in Belfast.
“The Visitor Services team is looking forward to a busy cruise season welcoming visitors from around the world and we will continue to work with our tourism partners and cruise ground handlers in driving much needed business to visitor attractions and experience providers right across Northern Ireland and support the rebuilding of our tourism economy.”
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