Cruises fourth most favoured holiday option in UK poll

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Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen

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Published: 03 July 2023 03 July 2023

Cruises have come fourth in a poll to rate various holiday options in a UK poll that covered just over 1,800 respondents and was carried out by online agency Travelzoo, Travel Weekly reports.

City breaks, beach holidays and by cultural or historical sightseeing or experiences held the first three positions.

“When asked what they would like to do on holiday, 46% said they would like to visit somewhere completely new; 39% had no preference and were open to ideas while 15% would visit somewhere they know and love,” Travel Weekly reported.

Holland America Line to offer ex UK sailing for first time in half decade

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Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen

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Published: 03 July 2023 03 July 2023

Holland America Line will offer a sailing from the UK port of Dover in September, the first time the Carnival group company has offered a departure from the country in five years.

Nieuw Statendam, which is the second Pinnacle class ship of the company, will operate the 11-day Iberian cruise, which will depart Copenhagen on 6 September.

“The ship will then call in Dover on 8 September to pick up ex-UK guests for the nine remaining days,” the comoany said in a statement. The itinerary then includes calls at Porto, Lisbon, Seville and Barcelona and the cruise will terminate in Civitavecchia on 17 September.

“Cruise-only fares for the nine-day ex-UK segment lead in from £599pp based on two people sharing an inside stateroom,’ the company said.

Viking Line celebrates 50 years linking Turku to Stockholm

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Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä

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Published: 03 July 2023 03 July 2023

Viking Line has linked Turku with Stockholm since 1973. Over the decades, the popularity of the route has been boosted by shopping bargains, good economic times and bad, and ever more beautiful vessels. For this anniversary year, Viking Line is offering a package that combines a city holiday in Turku with a sea journey in one of the world’s most beautiful archipelagos.

For 50 years, the Turku route has grown into a cornerstone of Viking Line’s business and become a route that the shipping company has made significant investments in. Over the past ten years, the two most climate-smart vessels on the Baltic Sea have started operating on the route. Viking Grace made its maiden voyage in 2013, and Viking Glory was placed in service in 2022.

Last year, a total of 1.95 million passengers sailed on Viking Line’s Turku vesels, and the company’s market share on the route was as much as 68%. The new vessels are big attractions not just for people sailing the Baltic Sea but also for visitors coming to Turku.

“The proximity to the sea and maritime passenger service between Turku and Stockholm are an important part of our city’s identity and attractiveness. Smooth commuter traffic by sea is an important competitive factor for businesses in our region. It is impossible to imagine Turku without Viking Line and the sea link to Stockholm that this passenger service enables. For 50 years, Viking Line has shown courage in renewing itself and investing to strengthen this vital link,” says the mayor of Turku, Minna Arve.

Viking Line launched service between Turku and Stockholm in the summer of 1973, when Viking 4 and Marella started morning and evening sailings on the new route. Turku had long been of interest to what was then Vikinglinjen, since the city offered “the fastest route to the west”. The route was expected to tempt Finns into trying cruise travel, which was still unusual then, because in a single day passengers on the Turku vessels could “eat and drink more cheaply than on land and buy their allowance of alcohol and tobacco at cheap prices on board”.

“Finns became really interested in taking a cruise in the 1980s. The Turku vessels played an important role in this boom, and the mini cruises in particular drew people from different parts of the country. Trains and tour operator buses stopped right outside the terminal,” says Viking Line’s Senior Vice President of Corporate Communications, Johanna Boijer-Svahnström.

“At that time, it was exotic to go on a cruise. People travelled to Stockholm to buy products that weren’t available in Finland – even food. Our prices were moderate from the very beginning, since we wanted the boat trips to be accessible to everyone. The popularity of these affordable cruises did not fade even during the recession – then too, people needed to relax and get away from their everyday lives.”

With the breakthrough in cruise tourism, the 1980s were a golden age for the construction of every larger and more luxurious passenger ships. On the Turku route, Viking Line placed Viking Sally in service in 1980, Rosella in 1981 and Amorella in 1988. At the end of the decade, the company built its own port terminal in the Port of Turku.

“Versatility is the big advantage of the Turku route. On morning departures, people can enjoy the world’s most beautiful archipelago all day long, while the evening departures offer a long day in Stockholm and the picnic cruises provide a compact way for people to leave their everyday world behind. The route is popular with people travelling by car as well as with passengers attending a conference or taking a cruise. The vessels call both day and night at Åland, which is an important tourist destination for Viking Line,” notes Johanna Boijer-Svahnström.

To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Turku route, Viking Line has launched a mini-holiday package that, along with the cruise, also includes one night in a Turku hotel.

“Turku is a fantastic city for tourists since there is a lot to see and experience. By booking our new package, our passengers can enjoy Turku all day long if they want, get a good night’s sleep and then move comfortably to our flagship Glory for its morning departure. The mini-holiday has been well received by our customers, who previously headed for Turku and the morning departure really early in the morning.”

Viking Line’s vessels on the Turku route over the years:

– Viking 4 1973–1979
– Marella 1973–1979
– Turella 1979–1980
– Diana II 1979–1981
– Viking Sally 1980–1990
– Rosella 1981–1988, 1994–2002
– Amorella 1988–2022
– Kalypso 1990–1993
– Isabella 1997–2013
– Viking Grace 2013–
– Viking Glory 2022–

Photos from top to bottom: Viking Glory in Turku, credit: Port of Turku

Viking Glory and Viking Grace meet daily in Mariehamn, credit: Teijo Niemela

Cruise Media LLC Chief Content Officer Carolyn Spencer Brown enjoying a sail-away from Turku onboard the Viking Glory

Explora Journeys signs partnership with EHL Hospitality Business School

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Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä

Category: More News More News

Published: 02 July 2023 02 July 2023

Explora Journeys, the luxury lifestyle brand of the MSC Group, has announced its partnership with EHL Hospitality Business School, the world’s leading hospitality management school with campuses in Switzerland and Singapore. The partnership aims to provide an innovative and world-class Guest Experience Foundations training program for all Explora Journeys’ onboard employees.

For over 125 years, EHL has pioneered the methods of Swiss hospitality education, set the standards of excellence in this field and is the global reference in education, innovation and consulting for the hospitality and service sector.

“With our brand being created in Switzerland - the cradle of luxury hospitality - we are proud to partner with the world’s leading hospitality school EHL. This partnership will offer our employees world-class luxury hospitality education and represents a significant step in ensuring that we continue to deliver exceptional guest experiences.” said Michael Ungerer, CEO of Explora Journeys. “We believe that investing in training and development will enable us to create a distinct, culturally intelligent and sustainable service culture across the organization.”

The training program will even further elevate the solid, distinct and sustainable service culture across the organization. It is designed to reinforce the company's commitment to providing exceptional guest experiences with a focus on a truly European service style that creates a vibrant and cosmopolitan atmosphere onboard.

The Guest Experience Foundation modules will be delivered by EHL Certified Trainers, covering both essential skills and advanced knowledge required for delivering exceptional customer experiences in the luxury hospitality industry. The program will be further reinforced by online refreshers, leveraging a self-directed e-learning environment for in-depth study of the topics. Additional activities will be conducted onboard by trained managers to reinforce the key messages and to elevate the foundational lessons.

As part of the partnership, a ‘Leading Guest Experience’ module has also been co-designed for managers. This includes tools that will be used for on-the-job reinforcement, including dynamic experiential activities.

“We are delighted to partner with Explora Journeys to deliver innovative and practical training programs that will equip their employees with the necessary skills to deliver exceptional customer experiences in the luxury hospitality industry,” said Markus Venzin, CEO of EHL Group. “Our program is designed to ensure that the employees at Explora Journeys receive the highest quality of education and training that will drive the company's growth and success. Our expertise in luxury hospitality education combined with Explora Journeys' commitment to exceptional guest experiences is a perfect match, and we look forward to working together to create a service culture that is second to none."

EXPLORA I will depart on her maiden journey on 17 July 2023 from Southampton, UK for a 15-night sailing discovering the Norwegian fjords and the Arctic Circle to Copenhagen, DK.