More Chinese choose to cruise
By Victoria Fei |
June 30, 2012, Saturday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
CRUISE liners are chock-full of activities, they're floating hotels, entertainment districts, amusement parks and shopping malls. Cruise operators increasingly are targeting Chinese customers who increasingly choose to cruise for holidays.
Betting on a growing Chinese market, Royal Caribbean International is basing the giant Voyager of the Seas at Shanghai Wusongkou International Cruise Terminal in Baoshan District for the summer. In October, it departs for a season of voyages out of Sydney, Australia.
The 138,000-ton, 3,114-passenger liner is one of the world's largest cruise ships and twice the size of any passenger vessel operating regularly out of China.
The Voyager of the Seas mainly visits Japan and South Korea. Tickets for the first voyage on June 19 were sold out months in advance.
The 15-deck behemoth is filled with activities 24 hours a day. It offers a 61-meter-high rock-climbing wall, standard basketball court, ice-skating rink mini-golf course, theaters, clubs, casino, an avenue of bars (the longest afloat), restaurants, cafes, duty-free shopping in the enormous Royal Promenade, spas, a gym, indoor and outdoor swimming pools - you name it. If you want quiet, there's a library.
The ice-skating rink is open to passengers during the day, while at night it's the venue for spectacular ice-skating shows.
Voyager of the Seas also features the Adventure Ocean Youth Area.
To provide a customized experience for Chinese passengers, there are Chinese-language services and signs, Chinese menus and Chinese restaurants. Brands favored by Chinese consumers are offered at the Royal Promenade duty-free shops.
Great food is one of the main attractions of taking a cruise and formal dinners are a tradition dating back to the late 1800s when cruises were intended for the royalty and the wealthy who expected elegant, formal dinners. Today there are choices from fine dining to casual cafes and pizzerias.
Food is prepared by expert chefs and served by friendly, attentive stewards.
The main dining room covers three floors. Passengers can dine in the Windjammer Café and boutique restaurants such as Portofino and Johnny Rockets.
"China's cruise market is young and vibrant. Royal Caribbean International is optimistic about the development of the cruise industry here and will continue to invest in this market," says Lisa Bauer, senior vice president for global sales and marketing of Royal Caribbean International.
"Deploying Voyager of the Seas in China demonstrates our commitment to meeting the growing demand from Chinese guests for cruise vacations."
As living standards rise and the demand for tourism grows in China, cruise vacations are becoming increasingly popular, leading to an annual growth rate of 30 to 50 percent for the cruise industry, Bauer says.
Royal Caribbean International's growth has benefited greatly from support of the central and local governments, travel agencies and media partners.
"We are delighted to contribute to the development of Baoshan's cruise industry," says Liu Zinan, managing director for China and Asia of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.
From March to October this year, Legend of the Seas and its sister Voyager of the Seas have set out from Shanghai, Tianjin, Xiamen and Hong Kong, visiting Japan, Russia, South Korea, Vietnam and Taiwan (a Chinese province). This season, the liners will accommodate more than 100,000 Chinese and international guests on three- to nine-night European-American-style cruises.
Following the positive response to Voyager of the Seas' arrival, Royal Caribbean International announced that it would send the 140,000-ton Mariner of the Seas to China and offer international itineraries starting from Tianjin in 2013.
At that time, two of the world's top 10-ranked cruise ships will be in China offering modern Western cruises with Chinese characteristics.
Betting on a growing Chinese market, Royal Caribbean International is basing the giant Voyager of the Seas at Shanghai Wusongkou International Cruise Terminal in Baoshan District for the summer. In October, it departs for a season of voyages out of Sydney, Australia.
The 138,000-ton, 3,114-passenger liner is one of the world's largest cruise ships and twice the size of any passenger vessel operating regularly out of China.
The Voyager of the Seas mainly visits Japan and South Korea. Tickets for the first voyage on June 19 were sold out months in advance.
The 15-deck behemoth is filled with activities 24 hours a day. It offers a 61-meter-high rock-climbing wall, standard basketball court, ice-skating rink mini-golf course, theaters, clubs, casino, an avenue of bars (the longest afloat), restaurants, cafes, duty-free shopping in the enormous Royal Promenade, spas, a gym, indoor and outdoor swimming pools - you name it. If you want quiet, there's a library.
The ice-skating rink is open to passengers during the day, while at night it's the venue for spectacular ice-skating shows.
Voyager of the Seas also features the Adventure Ocean Youth Area.
To provide a customized experience for Chinese passengers, there are Chinese-language services and signs, Chinese menus and Chinese restaurants. Brands favored by Chinese consumers are offered at the Royal Promenade duty-free shops.
Great food is one of the main attractions of taking a cruise and formal dinners are a tradition dating back to the late 1800s when cruises were intended for the royalty and the wealthy who expected elegant, formal dinners. Today there are choices from fine dining to casual cafes and pizzerias.
Food is prepared by expert chefs and served by friendly, attentive stewards.
The main dining room covers three floors. Passengers can dine in the Windjammer Café and boutique restaurants such as Portofino and Johnny Rockets.
"China's cruise market is young and vibrant. Royal Caribbean International is optimistic about the development of the cruise industry here and will continue to invest in this market," says Lisa Bauer, senior vice president for global sales and marketing of Royal Caribbean International.
"Deploying Voyager of the Seas in China demonstrates our commitment to meeting the growing demand from Chinese guests for cruise vacations."
As living standards rise and the demand for tourism grows in China, cruise vacations are becoming increasingly popular, leading to an annual growth rate of 30 to 50 percent for the cruise industry, Bauer says.
Royal Caribbean International's growth has benefited greatly from support of the central and local governments, travel agencies and media partners.
"We are delighted to contribute to the development of Baoshan's cruise industry," says Liu Zinan, managing director for China and Asia of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.
From March to October this year, Legend of the Seas and its sister Voyager of the Seas have set out from Shanghai, Tianjin, Xiamen and Hong Kong, visiting Japan, Russia, South Korea, Vietnam and Taiwan (a Chinese province). This season, the liners will accommodate more than 100,000 Chinese and international guests on three- to nine-night European-American-style cruises.
Following the positive response to Voyager of the Seas' arrival, Royal Caribbean International announced that it would send the 140,000-ton Mariner of the Seas to China and offer international itineraries starting from Tianjin in 2013.
At that time, two of the world's top 10-ranked cruise ships will be in China offering modern Western cruises with Chinese characteristics.
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