CRUISE NEWS YOU CAN USE
Hurtigruten to treble capacity in Antarctic by relocating Midnatsol
Hollie-Rae Merrick
Hurtigruten will be dedicating a second ship to Antarctic sailings from September 2016. The line will relocate Midnatsol, which is currently operating along the Norwegian coast.
The 500-passenger ship will
operate alongside the line’s expedition ship, Fram. Hurtigruten’s Antarctic capacity
will increase from 2,268 berths in 2015-16 to 6,800 in 2016-17. Fram will continue to sail from Ushuaia, while Midnatsol, which will be the largest ship to offer landings in Antarctica, will sail
from Punta Arenas to the Chilean fjords, Strait of Magellan and Cape Horn. Cecilia Abert, the line’s UK managing director, said the alterations being made to Midnatsol would widen Hurtigruten’s appeal and help the line attract a younger audience. The addition of a Young
Explorers programme onboard Midnatsol means that, for the first time, Hurtigruten will be actively targeting families. The ship will also feature a science lab, where passengers can take part in experiments or listen to lectures by scientists.
Abert said: “We’re offering two
very different propositions with Midnatsol and Fram. “We are positioning Fram for hardcore explorers and more adventurous travellers, whereas Midnatsol will offer a softer kind of discovery and exploration. “This definitely widens our
appeal and the markets we can attract.
6,800
Hurtigruten’s capacity on
Antarctic cruises in 2016-17
Line bids to position itself as more of a premium brand
Hurtigruten’s new UK managing director is looking to reposition the brand as a more premium operator. Cecilia Abert said the line’s marketing materials and messages were changing to reflect the premium offering on board. “Our agent partners will have noticed some changes
24 •
travelweekly.co.uk — 28 May 2015
“We are repositioning the brand to make it a lot clearer that we are the number one when it comes to exploration cruising. “We’re going in
a new direction and putting a lot more
focus on the exploration
side of things.”
hurtigruten.com
over the past couple of months,” she said. “We’re definitely changing the way we put our messages out. “We are communicating with agents more regularly and using a more magazine feel, rather than a brochure feel.
We want it to be more ‘newsy’.”
Abert said the line
Cecilia Abert
would be introducing more marketing tools for agents, as well as running more competitions and a series of roadshows.
PICTURE: FRIEDRICH STUCKE
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