Case Study

Marella Cruises

Marella Cruises, formerly Thomson Cruises, is the UK's third largest cruise line. Part of TUI UK and Ireland, the operator was rebranded in October 2017. The name Marella is of Celtic origin - the name was chosen to reflect the company's spirit of exploration and discovery across the seas.

THE CHALLENGE: Marella Cruises' strength has historically been in the fly-cruise sector, taking customers to the Med in the summer and the Caribbean, Canary Islands and South-East Asia in the winter. However, as the company grew its capacity, plans were set in motion to return to UK cruising and widen its destination portfolio for customers. 

THE SOLUTION: Marella Cruises chose the Port of Tyne as its only departure point in the UK from summer 2017. Holidaymakers start and finish their cruise at Port of Tyne, with a range of itineraries covering a total of 23 countries and 112 points of call. 

THE OUTCOME: During the summers of 2017 and 2018, a total of 33,000 passengers are expected to cruise from the Port of Tyne with Marella Cruises. Holidaymakers are travelling from a wide area of the UK to sail from Newcastle. In 2018, Marella Cruises will increase its capacity out of the Port by bringing in the Marella Discovery. 

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"Newcastle is in a great location to allow easy access to fantastic destinations in Northern Europe, like Scandinavia, Iceland and the Baltics. It's a very slick operation at Port of Tyne and very customer focused."

Neil Duncan, General Manager Planning and Trading, Marella Cruises