Royal Caribbean International’s Brilliance of the Seas has docked in Dubai marking the company’s official entry into the Middle East ahead of its first regional tour starting tomorrow (January 19).
Following close to two years of planning, the 962-feet long cruise ship will be making seven-night round-trip sailings to Muscat, Fujairah, Abu Dhabi and Bahrain, including pre-and post-sailing stopovers in Dubai.
Commenting on the decision to enter the Middle East cruise market at the launch earlier today, Royal Caribbean Cruises senior vice president international Michael Bayley said: “I wonder why we didn’t make this decision earlier. I wonder why we didn’t come here earlier”.
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He said Brilliance of the Seas was at full capacity for its first cruise this week, bringing 2100 cruise passengers to Dubai.
Over the four-month season, more than 32,000 guests are expected to book onto the cruise.
On board Brilliance of the Seas at the ‘plaques and keys’ ceremony held this morning, DTCM executive director business tourism Hamad Mohammed bin Mejren said that this would be a 30% increase on cruise passengers coming into Dubai.
“The economic impact of cruise tourism is tremendous and we are confident that Royal Caribbean International will be a crucial part of this contribution,” said bin Mejren.
He added that Dubai's new cruise terminal - which can accommodate three to four ships depending on size - would be open some time next month.
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