As a relatively new convert to cruise holidays – and one who is still, admittedly, in the evangelical stage – I am excited about the increasing number of ships visiting the Arabian Gulf this winter season.
Before we start: cruises are not everybody’s idea of fun. Some people find the very idea of being stuck on a boat with a bunch of strangers a big turn-off. But there are plenty of plusses.
I’ve been on eight cruises in the past three years and I’m busily checking out the options for my next adventure. Soon I will not have to shell out for an airfare just to get to my port of departure, because that port may very well be Dubai.
From late December, Dubai will be the home port for Royal Caribbean's Splendour of the Seas, Costa Cruises' Costa Fortuna and the MSC Musica. Another Costa ship, the neoRiviera, will do three, week-long round trips from Dubai to Muscat and Abu Dhabi in December-January.
On top of that several more cruises will be passing through the region on their way to Asian or African ports.
Authorities are expecting record numbers of passengers. Abu Dhabi’s Port Zayed, which will open a new terminal by the end of the year, is budgeting on about 200,000 people – most of them from Europe – docking in the capital this coming season.
That’s good news for the UAE economy, because visitors will be spending money on airlines to fly here as well as shopping and visiting attractions. It’s also an opportunity for UAE residents like me to grab a bargain holiday.
The simple attraction of cruise ships is that they are self-contained resorts that also take you from one destination to another. The passenger doesn’t have to worry about packing and unpacking, arranging hotels, finding transport and tour guides or coordinating timetables. And there’s no problem finding your way home after a big night out, because there’s a theatre, nightclub and a variety of restaurants on-board.
Then there’s the price. At the time of writing, one seven-day cruise ex-Dubai in late December is advertised online for just over Dh2,000 per person twin share. When you consider that that includes hotel-like accommodation (although, to be fair, the cabins are smaller than your average hotel room), all meals and an entertainment programme for a week, that’s a bargain. In fact, it’s less than I paid for my most recent two-day, one-night stay in Dubai.
Of course, there are plenty of ways you can pay more, and the cruise lines don’t miss a chance to upsell. Optional extras include non-standard drinks, spa treatments, gratuities, premium restaurant meals and onshore excursions, which in the UAE range from dune-bashing to visiting the Grand Mosque. The costs of excursions are often inflated, but you do have the choice of making your own arrangements – or staying on-board to enjoy the gym, pool and other facilities.
Cruise holidays have taken me to the pyramids of Giza, the Treasury in Petra, the Tivoli in Copenhagen, the canals of Venice, the colonial-style public buildings of Falmouth in Jamaica, and the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul.
But I also spent nine days seeing only the sea as I sailed across the Atlantic on the Norwegian Epic, a ship that can carry about 4,200 passengers and almost 1,700 crew, and offers more than enough in the way of diversions to fill the trip.
Cruising is a way of life to tens of thousands of people – some retirees even live on ships – and it is one of the fastest-growing tourism sectors. The current operators are bullish, building bigger and better ships, and expanding their areas of operation.
And there still are opportunities for enterprising new players to get on-board. Halal cruising, anybody?
bdebritz@thenational.ae
On Twitter: @debritz