On Land
Azamara Pursuing the UK Market with Its Newest and Renewed Fleet Member, Azamara Pursuit
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zamara Pursuit, the newest addition to Azamara Club Cruises’ fleet, is currently undergoing its multimillion-pound modernization in Belfast—the first time a Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. brand has chosen a UK shipyard for such a project—at the Harland and Wolff shipyard, under the management of outfitting specialist MJM Group. “We’ve seen unprecedented support from the UK market for Azamara Pursuit, so we are delighted to be able to show our recognition of this by allowing its transformational journey to take place here,” said Larry Pimentel, president and CEO of Azamara Club Cruises. “We’ve seen double the UK demand for Azamara Pursuit than we usually see for its sister ships, so this is a really exciting time for us as a brand.” According to Richard Twynam, Azanara’s managing director for UK and Ireland, this support and demand was all-encompassing, with 2017 serving as a record year in the market with 30 percent growth and in “in a fantastic
position already” for 2018, generating more revenue for 2018 than 2015 in the same period. “What’s more, repeat guest levels from the UK are the highest for the brand overall,” he continued. “The Azamara Pursuit announcements are enabling us to continue the drumbeat of good news, with even more opportunities for agents and guests to see Azamara ships in the UK than ever before.”
“WE’VE SEEN UNPRECEDENTED SUPPORT FROM THE UK MARKET…” –LARRY PIMENTEL, PRESIDENT & CEO, AZAMARA CLUB CRUISES
Slated for completion by the end of July, Pursuit’s extensive modernization will transform her into an almost mirror image of sister ships Azamara Quest and Azamara Journey before she officially joins the fleet in August on a maiden voyage departing Southampton and providing a “country-intensive” voyage to Norway. “We launched our country-intensive series last year as an opportunity for guests to explore countries on a more in-depth level, which is part of our commitment to destination immersion,” explained Pimentel. The maiden voyage—the first of four voyages that will touch the UK— will depart August 1 and travel to eight Norwegian destinations, including Kristiansand, Flåm and Haugesund, with overnight stays in Oslo and Bergen. Pursuit will then depart Southampton for an Iceland-intensive voyage on August 13, before a christening sailing on August 28. She will then depart Southampton once more on August 30 for a 13-night “Wine & Romance” itinerary that will reposition her in the Mediterranean.
FIRST QUARTER 2018 | TRAVEL & CRUISE 69
