A&P Falmouth is set to welcome Ambassador Cruise Line’s ‘Ambition’ today (Wednesday) for the first cruise turnaround to take place in Falmouth in seven years.
Ambition, owned by Ambassador Cruise Line, is making her inaugural cruise from Falmouth ahead of her 11-night “British Isles Discovery” cruise that visits the ports of Honfleur, Newcastle, Scabster for John O’ Groats, Portree, Isle of Skye, Tobermory, Isle of Mull Belfast, Bristol Royal Portbury and returning to Falmouth.
Ambassador is the UK’s leading premium value, no-fly cruise line – and has four sailings departing from Falmouth this cruise season, with an expected 4,960 guests from the region to experience sailing with the cruise line.
A&P Group operates Falmouth’s 1300 sq ft International Cruise Terminal, and in preparation for the visit has made significant investment in the port and its facilities - including working with long standing partner Newquay Airport to provide baggage screening services.
Drystan Jones, director port development and director-general manager FDEC, said: “Our aim is to provide a sustainable port environment that allows cruise tourism to be optimised and together with other Cornish ports we will continue to improve the quality of the offer to this market.
“Cruise tourism delivers substantial economic impact to the region – in this year alone, we have welcomed over 26 cruise ships and 26,617 of passengers through the port and into the town of Falmouth. Plus the thousands of visitors who attended the cruise facility for the Tall Ships Festival.
“The warm welcome provided by the Falmouth Cruise Ambassadors should also not overlooked in driving this continued success, after all it is the excellent feedback from the cruise ship passengers that ultimately leads to return visits.”
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Christian Verhounig, CEO of Ambassador, said: “Ambassador has, in the short time it has been in operation, firmly established a unique premium value offering and is now renowned within the cruise sector for offering the warmest welcome at sea. We have long been looking forward to celebrating the official launch of sailings from Falmouth onboard our second lady of the sea, Ambition.
“Adding another ship to our fleet is evidence of the strength of both Ambassador and the wider cruise industry. Demand for sailings from the South West has been very strong, indicating that holidaymakers see a holiday as a necessity, not a luxury, and are eager to get away. Given the current economic climate, our premium value, no-fly offering is proving very popular with new-to-cruise customers and seasoned cruisers alike, courtesy of our inflation-defying prices.
“We’re seeing significant demand for Falmouth sailings on our small to mid-size ships with holidaymakers from the region eager to get away this year. Our no-fly holiday options have proved a real hit, with guests telling us that they love driving to a port, parking their car and boarding our ships with a minimum of hassle – and that’s without mentioning how they can avoid airport queues, flight cancellations, baggage limits or exchange rate fluctuations when sailing from the UK, where the currency onboard the Ambassador fleet is in pound sterling.
“Ambition setting off on her maiden voyage from Falmouth marks a significant step in Ambassador’s regional departure programme. With nine out of ten guests recommending a sailing with us, we’re looking forward to offering guests from the region the warmest welcome at sea in the months and years to come.”
The inaugural sailing of Ambition from Falmouth comes almost 18 months on from Ambassador’s first ship, Ambience, welcoming guests onboard her inaugural sailing in April 2022. In her first season, Ambience sailed 18 cruises and welcomed almost 30,000 guests onboard, nine out of ten of whom said that they would recommend a sailing with Ambassador.
Over the course of her inaugural season, Ambition will visit 29 countries, call at 91 ports and travel more than 70,000 nautical miles. Together with her sister ship, Ambience, the 2023/24 season will see Ambassador’s portfolio of breathtaking destinations grow to 60 countries, with ships visiting 166 ports and sailing more than 160,000 nautical miles. Cruise experiences will last from two to 120 days, and almost 70,000 guests will travel with Ambassador.
September sees the busiest month on record for cruise calls at Falmouth with ten vessels scheduled to make calls which include Ambition (September 6) Silver Moon (September 7), Island Princess (September 9), MSC Fantasia (September 10), Viking Neptune (September 11), AIDAaura (September 12), Seabourn Ovation (September 12), Viking Jupiter (September 13), Ambition (September 17) and Le Champlain on September (September 18).
The year 2023 is the busiest on record for cruiseship calls with 50 calls from ships ranging from the small expedition vessels such as the France registered ‘Le Champlain’ due later this month, which is from the Ponant-Explorer class of ship from the stable of Ponant to the 300 metre long leviathans of the industry, Island Princess, MSC Fantasia expected this weekend to anchor in the bay.
The European cruise market is the second largest sector in the worldwide industry with tourism revenue generated in 2023 of £ 5.8 billion with a predicted increase to £7.3 billion in 2027.
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