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Portland Port expecting to break more records in 2018

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Seabourn Quest and Rotterdam pictured at Portland Port in 2017
Over the last ten years, the UK’s Portland Port has been steadily growing its cruise business from four calls and 2,000 passengers in 2009 to record breaking figures of 32 ships bringing nearly 39,000 passengers expected in 2018.

The cruise season starts on the April 3 with the visit of Phoenix Reisen’s Albatros. The German operator is Portland’s most frequent visiting cruise line, with 30 calls to date.

Ian McQuade, general manager – commercial at Portland Port commented, ‘Phoenix Reisen has been regular and frequent visitors to Portland and we are looking forward to seeing its vessels call a total of four times this year.’

The second call of 2018 falls on April 25 and marks the inaugural visit of Norwegian Cruise Line’s, Norwegian Breakaway.

Breakaway will be the longest vessel to ever dock at Portland Port and will bring with her the greatest number of passengers (plus 4,000) on one ship that the port has dealt with to date.

McQuade, said the Norwegian Breakaway call would not have been possible without the berth extension that was opened in April last year. We hope that she will be the first of many similar sized cruise ships to visit Portland Port.

The port has seven inaugural calls booked for 2018 which vary in size and include Regent Seven Seas’, Seven Seas Explorer and Seven Seas Navigator, TUI Cruises’ Mein Schiff 3 and Seabourn’s newest vessel Seabourn Ovation.

Part of Portland Port’s success so far can be attributed to being members of cruise destination marketing groups, such as Destination South West and Atlantic Alliance, noted McQuade.

Destination South West and Atlantic Alliance have both come to a natural end, so from 2018, Portland Port has become a member of CruiseBritain and Cruise Europe, he added.