Archive (08.05.06)
CRUISE SHIPS HEADING FOR ABERDEEN
Aberdeen’s cruise ship season is set to begin this month (May), with the arrival of the first of nine vessels booked to date to bring visitors to the City and Shire.
The specialist Russian cruise vessel, Grigory Mikheev, will sail in from Holland on 20 May to embark passengers for a nature cruise to Fair Isle. She will return on 3 June before going to Spitzbergen and the Arctic Circle.
A second specialist ship, Professor Molchanov, will arrive from Fair Isle on 2 June, leaving the same day to return there with new passengers.
Both of these vessels spend part of the year on nature cruises from Chile to the Antarctic.
The Island Sky will be in Aberdeen on 21 May, en route from Stromness, in Orkney, to Leith, and again on 23 May on the return route. The Hansaetic will berth on 20 June on her way from Leith to Stromness.
A cruise to celebrate the 75 th anniversary of the National Trust for Scotland includes Aberdeen on 2 June. The schedule for the Black Prince means she will anchor in the bay and transfer passengers ashore by tender to enjoy the attractions of the city and the Trust’s properties in Aberdeenshire.
The Polar Pioneer, a former Russian research vessel, will call at Aberdeen twice. Passengers will be embarked on 29 June for an eco-cruise to Oban where new passengers will board for the return voyage to Aberdeen, arriving 21 July.
EnShip, ASCO UK and Euroline Shipping are the local agents in Aberdeen for the cruise ships.
Aberdeen Harbour Board Chief Executive, Colin Parker, said: “As well as providing ease of access to the city on its doorstep and to the hinterland, the harbour continues to develop a niche role as a port-of-call for specialist cruises with passengers interested in marine and birdlife along the Scottish coast.”
The Harbour Board’s promotion of the port and area to the cruise industry includes membership of the Cruise Europe marketing organisation.
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