KUALA LUMPUR: There are no signs of rough seas ahead for
Royal Caribbean Cruises (RCC) as the global cruise operator sees strong growth in Malaysia and Southeast Asia.
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd managing director Asia Pacific Angie Stephen said the cruise market in Southeast Asia has seen strong growth over the last several years and continue to grow strong year to year.
"Coming from China, there is a massive growth and coming into Southeast Asia, we have being moving from a seasonal product to nearly all-year round now.
"Consumer demand has grown. The penetration of cruising is on the rise but still very small, which is about 1 per cent in Southeast Asia.
"Apart from China, we are seeing strong growth coming from Malaysia, Indonesia and India, especially during the peak holiday seasons," she told NST Business recently.
For Malaysia, Angie said RCC is constantly looking for new port calls and aims to bring bigger cruise ships to Malaysian and Southeast Asian waters.
"For RCC, we have a new ship coming out every year and they have to sail somewhere.
"But it is all about port infrastructure and the readiness to accept our ships.
"Currently in Malaysia, we call on Port Klang, Penang, Langkawi and we are working with others who are interested in developing infrastructure," she said.
Based in Singapore, Angie took over the duties from Sean Treacy earlier this year and oversees all commercial and operational activities for the company’s brands, Royal Caribbean International and Azamara Club Cruises in the region.
Sean has been relocated to Miami this month to take up the new role of Associate Vice President Strategic Planning for International.
In April this year, RCC's Voyager of the Seas, one of the
largest cruise ships in Southeast Asia, sailed to Singapore for her longest‐running Southeast Asian programme until June 2019.
Also on the same month, the Quantum of the Seas, sailed to Singapore for a six‐month homeporting season in 2019 to 2020 – the cruise line’s longest deployment for a Quantum Class ship.
Itineraries include 4‐night cruises to Penang or Phuket, 5‐night cruises to Kuala Lumpur (Port Klang), Penang and Phuket, a 7‐night cruise to Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Phuket and a 7‐night cruise to Bangkok (Laem Chabang) and Ho Chi Minh City.
In June this year, RCC announced the arrival of its upcoming ship - Spectrum of the Seas, to the region next year, including an inaugural Southeast Asian season in May 2019.
This is the second time the international cruise line is deploying a brand new ship to Asia for homeporting, which underscores its ever growing confidence in the region.
Her port calls include Kuala Lumpur (Port Klang), Penang,
a 9‐night one‐way cruise from Singapore to Shanghai, calling at Ho Chi Minh City, Nha Trang and Hong Kong.
"We constantly looking for more port call in Malaysia and SEA as we are bring bigger ships into the region. I think Malaysia and Indonesia has a lot of potential," Angie said adding that East Malaysia business is also seeing growth in the recent years through RCC's network of agents there.
"From RCC's view, 3 of of our 25 ships are in this region and we are continuously adding capacity in our larger ships in the region," Angie said.
RCC owns and operates three global brands - Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Azamara
Club Cruises.
The company is a 50 per cent joint venture owner of the German brand TUI Cruises, a 49 per cent shareholder in the Spanish brand Pullmantur and a 36 percent shareholder in the Chinese brand SkySea Cruises.