NEWS SPECIAL REPORT
About 500 UK agents boarded Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Bliss for its maiden voyage. Harry Kemble joins the sailing from Bremerhaven to Southampton
From left: NCL’s Nick Wilkinson, Andy Stuart, Harry Sommer and Kevin Bubolz
AGENTS’ VIEWS OF BLISS
Natasha Lizardos, Thomas Cook “Bliss has opened my eyes to the opportunities
for multigenerational families. There is so much to do for a whole spectrum of ages.”
Rochelle Bradley, Cruise2 “Normally you have a lot of teething problems on
a new ship but the service has been incredible. The food has been phenomenal.”
Ian Gilder, Adore Cruises “Bliss is similar to other NCL ships but with some twists. It is exactly
what it says on the tin. You have go-karts, entertainment, Premium All Inclusive.”
Norwegian to launch five ships in next seven years
Norwegian Cruise Line wants to achieve “thoughtful, measured, disciplined growth” as it prepares to launch five ships in the next seven years.
Andy Stuart, NCL president and chief executive, told a press briefing during Norwegian Bliss’s inaugural sailing how the line
planned growth up until 2025. Norwegian Encore, the line’s last
Breakaway Plus-class ship, due in 2019, will be followed by four Leonardo-class ships, in 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025. The line also has two additional options. Stuart revealed the line’s fleet capacity would increase from 46,520 to 64,000 berths over the next seven years. “Growth is something that
we are excited about as a brand. The way we think about this is – thoughtful, measured, and disciplined growth,” he said. He added that the new smaller
Leonardo-class ship, which has capacity for 3,300 passengers, would offer another chance for the
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travelweekly.co.uk 26 April 2018 “It is going to connect the guests
“The way we think about growth is thoughtful, measured, and disciplined”
line to “innovate” and “enhance” the guest experience. “As you can see the capacity [of
the Leonardo-class ship] is slightly smaller than Norwegian Bliss [4,004 capacity],” he said. “We are moving to a footprint
that is slightly smaller. It gives us a little bit more flexibility.
with the ocean. This is really at the heart of everything we do. The [Leonardo-class] ships will continue to enhance the brand in an innovative way.” Stuart also revealed work was to
start on Norwegian’s new Miami cruise terminal this week. It is being built in partnership with the city authorities and is expected to be completed in 2019. He said: “It is going to be
incredible and change the guest experience when arriving into Miami and embarking on a ship.”
Wilkinson: UK market needs more ships
The UK cruise market is “being held back” by a lack of availability in the marketplace. Norwegian Cruise Line’s Nick Wilkinson cited the need for more ships when explaining why UK ocean passenger numbers grew by a modest 0.5% last year to 1.96 million. Wilkinson said: “One of the reasons [the UK has not grown faster]
is that the global demand is at such a level that availability is not in the marketplace. We need more ships.”
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