Southampton Set For Busy Weekend

Southampton’s cruise port is currently getting ready to host 6 cruise ships for the second time this year.

The 6 cruise ships; Balmoral, Crown Princess, Grand Princess, Ventura, Celebrity Eclipse and Artania (previously Artemis) are all set to arrive at Southampton in the early hours of Saturday morning where they will begin preparations for their upcoming summer itineraries to the Mediterranean, the Baltic and Scandinavia.

The volume of cruise visitors and passengers to the city is expected to be in the region of 33,000 which it is hoped will create an additional 9 million in revenue spread amongst Southampton’s various taxi companies, hotels and retail outlets.

Fred.Olsen’s Managing Director, Nigel Lingard, believes that such a gathering of ships will become an increasingly familiar event on the south-coast, particularly with the rise in cruisers looking to sail from the UK.

“We are delighted that, for the second time this year, we will be part of such an historic occasion. With the increasing success of Southampton as a cruise port and the ever-growing demand for ex-UK cruises, I expect we will see more of these magnificent line-ups in future”.

In preparation for such a regular influx of cruise ships, the port is already making plans to add a fifth cruise terminal to its infrastructure. The development, which is projected to cost around £30 million, is expected to be completed by the end of 2013.