The Association of Mediterranean Cruise Ports (MedCruise) presented the current trends in the region at its 60th MedCruise General Assembly ahead of a promising cruise season this year.
Cruise line executives engaged in a lively panel discussion moderated by Francesca Antonelli from the port of Valencia and Lorenzo Vera from the port of Motril regarding challenges ports faced during the past two years, opportunities, and the positive perspective for the cruise industry.
“This year started pretty well for our company since we restarted cruising in June 2021, and I can tell that 2022 has been so far a very good year for us. We are having a very good response from our loyal guests with over 75 percent occupancy fleetwide, going up to 90 percent with our newest ship Silver Dawn; so we are very happy about how this season is going,” said Andrea Ferla, destination experiences manager at Silversea Cruises.
“After Easter the situation improved. It was like a step change so it seems that trust is coming back. Guests are less fearful to cruise again and we are seeing numbers with better positive trends in the Mediterranean, and we are closing the gap versus the U.S. cruise market,” said Costa Cruises Director for Itinerary and Revenue Planning, Jacopo Pendola,
“I think in general we’re back to the itineraries that we intended to operate on our ships, which was a big deal to be able to go back to what we’ve published. We’ve had many changes over the last few years and to be able to go back to our program in Malta, and do all these itineraries that we always planned is just a great feeling,” said Sander Groothuis, vice president of port operations and development, Carnival UK.
“The confidence is coming back for the guests and that’s definitely helping interest. We are able to deliver the cruises with not too many changes so guests can experience what they book for, so that that makes a big difference,” he added.
“I feel optimistic about this year’s outcome in the region. Even in difficult situations we always look at the positive side. We are in the same mode as the cruise lines, and I feel it’s an opportunity for our ports to bring the best that we can offer,” added Maria Cano, cruise manager, Ports of Catalonia.
