Everything you need to know about Plymouth’s bid to be a major cruise port.
Plymouth is already known as a special city with a prominent place in many people’s hearts; its maritime history, quaint streets mixed with contemporary architecture, and the fact that it is a bustling hub of commerce all combine to make it a fantastic place to live and work. So when news started to come out about Plymouth’s bid to become a major cruise port, it all just seemed to make sense. Everything you need to know about Plymouth’s bid to be a major cruise port
Wooing the executives
Between 31st January and 2nd February 2023, bosses from some of the major cruise lines (such as P&O, Saga, Cunard, and Ambassador) came to Plymouth to see what they could see in terms of how it could become a major cruise port.
They will see the infrastructure already in place, which, as a historic naval town, is impressive. They will see the number of people living in the area (and they will get an idea of who can travel there to use the cruise port as well). They will get an understanding of the scale of things too, which, when we’re talking about enormous cruise liners, is a crucial part of any plan.
If their wooing goes according to plan, you might soon be able to head off on your cruise from Plymouth, giving the southwest a real focal point. Hopefully, you can get the best P&O cruises from the area sooner rather than later – there seems to be no reason why this would not be a viable idea.
2023 will be a bumper year for Plymouth cruises
The fact is, of course, that Plymouth is already host to a number of cruise ships and cruise lines. In fact, 2023 is set to be a truly bumper year for cruises going from Plymouth – there are already twelve bookings in place (a good chunk more than the seven from 2022), and that includes the magnificent MS Rotterdam (which proves there is room for the larger ships).
However, tourism chiefs want more for Plymouth, and they intend to make the area a destination for cruise lovers who won’t only be there to get onboard their ships but who can make the most of the beautiful city and its surroundings while they’re there.
A spokesperson from Destination Plymouth said: “We look forward to welcoming representatives from P&O Cruises, Cunard Line, Saga Cruises, and Ambassador Cruise Line to Britain’s Ocean City to wow them over the two-day visit.”
During the visit at the end of January and beginning of February, the tourism experts went all-out in their attempt to impress the cruise line operators. They took their guests to some of Plymouth’s best tourist destinations and restaurants to show them exactly what the city has to offer – which is a lot.
What do we know
The Fred Olsen Cruise Line’s Braemar and the Silversea Cruises’ Silver Dawn, each carrying 595 passengers, are set to make port calls in May of 2023. Phoenix Cruises’ Amera, with space for 834 passengers, and Seabourn Cruises’ Ovation, carrying 600 visitors, are both scheduled to arrive in September.
In addition, the 2,668-passenger capacity, 300-meter-long MS Rotterdam of Holland America Line, is scheduled to arrive on 16th April for a brief eight-hour stop. In October of 2022, to mark its 150th anniversary since its start in 1872, it previously made a stop in Plymouth.
Cruise ships can dock at one of three locations in Plymouth: Trinity Pier, West Wharf at Millbay, or one of several anchorages in Plymouth Sound. Passengers can take a tender trip to the Barbican’s landing stage from there, which takes around six to eight minutes.
