The Enjoyment Of Discovery Starts Again With Cruise!

The Enjoyment Of Discovery Starts Again With Cruise!

Routes To Be Explored Are Waiting For Cruise Lovers With Cruise Tours Starting From Turkey!

We evaluated the course of the cruise industry in Turkey with the Turkish representatives of the world's leading cruise brands; We talked with Burak Çalışkan, MSC Cruises Turkey Manager, Ercan Abitağaoğlu, Costa Cruises Turkey Manager, and Özgü Alnıtemiz, Caravan Tourism Director, about the fact that cruise tours will depart from Turkish ports again, the impact of the pandemic on the sector, the importance of Galataport and the expectations of the sector from 2022;

• How do you evaluate the developments in the field of tourism in Turkey and their effects on cruise tourism?

Positive developments in tourism in recent years and the improvement in our country's perception of security have had a positive impact on the tourism sector and the cruise sector. The completion of the Galataport project will have a positive impact on the industry, while the cruise ships that departed turn their routes back to Turkey. With the commissioning of Galataport, 3 large ships will be able to dock at the Karaköy port at the same time. This is a very important development for our sector and for Turkish tourism.

If adequate facilities, services and infrastructure are provided, coastal cities and potential ports in Turkey can attract more cruise ships, and destinations in Turkey can also be included in the Mediterranean and Black Sea programs among the favorite travel routes.

• What measures has the sector taken for the pandemic? Is there a change in the scope of travel insurance, taking into account the pandemic conditions?

The tourism sector, which is one of the sectors most affected by the pandemic, especially the cruise sector, started to welcome its passengers with comprehensive health and safety measures. In this regard, comprehensive health and safety measures are taken from the reservation stage until the passenger's return home. In addition, the scope of compulsory travel health insurance has been expanded to cover the financial costs that may arise due to Covid-19. In fact, in the event that the passenger catches Covid-19 during his travel, the reimbursement of his vacation was arranged so that the insurance company could cover it.

• What are the health measures taken on the ships for the guests during cruise holidays?

As part of social distancing, the capacity of common areas has been reduced, and events are held in smaller groups. In addition, in order to manage the number of guests, guests are required to make reservations before services and activities. When social distancing is low, guests are asked to wear face masks in public areas – such as elevators. Face masks are given to the guests daily in the cabin and are offered in all areas of the ship.

According to our health protocol, a new health and safety protocol is implemented that covers every aspect of the guest's journey starting from the reservation stage. Guests are requested to start their journey by completing their vaccinations at least 14 days before boarding. Before entering the terminal, the temperature of the guests is checked and each guest is subjected to an antigen swab test with appropriate security measures. All of the baggage is disinfected before being taken to the ship, and hospital grade disinfectants are used in the cleaning of the ship. Common areas are cleaned much more frequently. Personal hygiene of guests and crew is ensured by hand washing and sanitation stations. The ships have a fully equipped medical center. An emergency response plan is in place, including cabins dedicated to any suspected case or contacts. We ensure that our guests travel safely with us, with menus accessed via QR code in restaurants, a new type of service model in open buffets, and comprehensive health and safety conditions.

• How are the shore excursions done in the ports of call? Is the pandemic affecting shore excursions?

A "social bubble" operation is in place to protect the health of guests and the communities in the ports visited. Except for the excursions organized by our ship, our guests cannot leave the ship. During the trips, they continue the tour as a group under the control of our ship officers and tour guides. Tour guides and bus drivers who will show our guests are subjected to a rapid PCR test before the trip, and in case of a positive result, a spare of each driver, bus and tour guide is waiting at the port.

• What do you think about Turkey's potential for cruise tourism?

The size of the world cruise tourism market is 40 billion dollars. The annual contribution of cruise tourism to the Turkish economy is 2 billion dollars. Predictions are that the sector will grow by 50 percent in 5 years. It is possible to find historical places that will attract the attention of tourists in almost every city. As a country surrounded by seas on 3 sides, of course, we have a high potential in terms of cruise tourism. However, in order for more ships to come to our country, first of all, our ports must be overhauled and ports suitable for new generation cruise ships must be built.

• Who prefers cruise tours?

In our cruise tours, we host travelers from almost every profile on our ships. There are couples who prefer a cruise for their honeymoon, there are families with children, groups of friends, and there are guests who prefer to travel alone. In addition, cruise service is preferred for weddings, professional business meetings and many other events.

• What are the advantages of choosing a cruise holiday for holiday lovers?

Traveling with cruise turns into a passion for our guests who have experienced their cruise holiday once. Traveling with cruise means traveling to the most beautiful seas and cities of the world in a comfortable floating hotel or even in a small city. Opening your eyes to a new city, country and culture every morning is an invaluable experience. Cruise guests, with all-inclusive alternative cabin types accommodation options, enjoy the unique landscapes by resting in every comfort and entertainment, both economically and without the hassle of opening and closing their suitcases.

• In which period of the year are cruise tours mostly preferred?

Since the region changes according to the season, it is possible to travel every month of the year. Greek Islands, Western Mediterranean, Eastern Mediterranean, Aegean & Mediterranean, Northern Europe (Norwegian Fjords and Baltic Capitals) programs are preferred in summer, and Caribbean, Miami, South America, South Africa, Canary Islands and United Arab Emirates programs are preferred in winter.

• When does the early booking period for cruise ships start? How is the interest of Turkish guests in early booking campaigns?

The early booking period usually starts in November of each year and offers advantageous prices to the guests with campaigns covering the summer and winter routes of the following year. Package programs including round-trip flight tickets, transfers, travel insurance, taxes and guidance service come to the fore in the campaigns.

The fact that we have tours that will depart directly from Kusadasi port and Istanbul Galataport has already increased the number of cruise tour reservations for 2022.

• What kind of expectations does the sector have from 2022?

The year 2022 will be a year in which cruise tourism in Turkey and in the world will enter the recovery process again. The whole world really missed traveling and having fun. In addition, over the past two years, new and eye-catching ships have been added to the cruise fleet. Thanks to these new ships, cruise holidays have become much more enjoyable and fun. No one will want to miss out on such an amazing experience.

With the opening of Galataport and the arrival of ships to Istanbul and Turkish ports, our industry will gain momentum. Currently, the number of ships arriving in Turkey seems to be around 600. MSC Cruises, Costa Cruises and Celestyal Cruises are among those cruise companies. In 2022, we will start regular flights to Istanbul as well as Kuşadası. We are very excited that our city, which is one of the most important metropolises of the world like Istanbul, has gained a port at international standards. The eyes of the world cruise industry are also on us. While Turkish and Greek ports can be included in most of the Aegean & Mediterranean route programs, we hope that more ports will be opened for the maritime trade and cruise sector, keeping in mind that Turkey has a very important position in terms of Aegean and Mediterranean destinations.

After a long break, cruise ships are starting to come back to Turkish territorial waters with different destinations and alternative departure dates. Could you briefly talk about your upcoming ships and routes as MSC Cruises, Costa Cruises and Celestyal Cruises?

Burak Calışkan, MSC Cruises Turkey Manager

MSC Cruises ships are returning to Turkish ports as of 2022. Our first cruise ship, MSC Lirica, which is departing from Kuşadası and has a 7-night program, will make 29 separate voyages between 18 April 2022 and 25 October 2022. The route of our ship, which will start cruising from Kusadasi port, will end in Kusadasi after Haifa port in Israel, Limassol port in Southern Cyprus, Rhodes, Santorini and Piraeus (Athens) islands in Greece. We expect to host 6,960 Turkish guests on this route, which will attract the attention of Turkish guests.

Another exciting tour of Turkey will meet with our Turkish guests with two different date alternatives, with the 11-night program MSC Orchestra, moving to Istanbul Galataport port, with the Aegean & Mediterranean route, on September 27, 2022 and October 8, 2022. In this tour, our route was planned to stop at Kuşadası port after sailing from Galataport, after Piraeus (Athens) in Greece, Palermo, Rome and Genoa in Italy and ending in Istanbul.

Ercan Abitağaoğlu, Costa Cruises Turkey Manager

As Costa Cruises, we are returning to Turkish ports in 2022 with our Costa Venezia, one of our most innovative ships.

Costa Venezia which will start its first voyage from Istanbul, one of the most beautiful cities in the world, as of May 1, 2022, will be waiting to welcome Turkish guests to discover its most beautiful cities. In these programs, where the Istanbul Galataport port will be the main port, there will be ports on our route to Izmir, Kusadasi, Bodrum, Mykonos, Piraeus, Rhodes and Crete.

Our Costa Venezia ship will continue its active programs in Turkey in the winter of 2022-2023. Our ship, which will make 26 voyages between 20 November 2022 and 12 April 2023 with an 11-night Eastern Mediterranean program, will start its cruise from Istanbul Galataport port and will sail in Bodrum in Turkey, Limassol in Southern Cyprus, Haifa in Israel, Alexandria in Egypt, in Turkey. After visiting the ports of Kusadasi, it will end its route in Istanbul.

Özgü Alnıtemiz, Caravan Tourism Director

As Celestyal Cruises, we added a new ship to our fleet and announced that we would return to Turkish ports in 2022, after 2 years. Our ships will land on the sea again on  March 14. We will start taking our reservations with our 3, 4 and 7 night all-inclusive Greek Islands cruise tours departing from Kuşadası.

Our 3-night 4-day Iconic Aegean Tours program will start on March 19, departing from Kuşadası. Tours including Patmos, Crete, Santorini, Athens and Mykonos will continue until October. In the other part of the program, which is the 4-night program, Rhodes will be included in the route instead of Athens. In the Iconic Aegean winter package to be realized by Celestyal Olmpia, Syros will be added to this route.

This year, Thessaloniki has been added to our 7-night "Idyllic Aegean Tours" program that will start in May. The island of Milos, which was chosen as the “Best Island in the World” by Travel + Leisure magazine, has been added to the tour programs once again. Our Celestyal Crystal ship will arrive in Kuşadası every Monday until October, and the route of this program also includes Athens, Rhodes and Crete.

As Celestyal, we will also come to Istanbul this season. As part of our 6-night Eclectic Aegean Tours that will take place in October and November, our ship Crystal will dock at Galataport Port on Sundays and depart from here for the Greek Islands route on Mondays. The route of Crystal, which will depart from Istanbul to the “Blue City” Kavala, include Thessaloniki, Volos, Santorini and Athens, respectively.