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Azamara outlines UK focus for new ship
Azamara Pursuit, the newest ship for Azamara Club Cruises, will sail its maiden voyage from Southampton and its first four voyages will touch the UK.
It will also be refitted in the UK, going into wet dock in Belfast in Spring 2018. It’s the first time Azamara’s parent, Royal Caribbean Cruises, has chosen a UK ship yard for such a project.
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The cruise line has already confirmed its newest ship will be christened in Southampton.
"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."
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Azamara Pursuit will join the fleet in August 2018, after being transformed to be almost identical to its sister ships Azamara Quest and Azamara Journey.
Work will begin in Spring 2018 and will be completed by the end of July.
The maiden voyage will depart Southampton on August 1 and will travel to eight Norwegian destinations, including Kristiansand, Flam and Haugesund, with overnight stays in Oslo and Bergen.
Azamara Journey will dock in Haugesund on the same day, marking their first meeting.
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Azamara Pursuit will then sail from Southampton for an Iceland-intensive voyage on August 13 before a special christening voyage on August 28.
The ship will then depart Southampton once more on August 30 for its 13-night Wine & Romance Voyage.
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Richard Twynam, managing director for UK and Ireland, added: "Thanks to the incredible support from our UK guests and travel agents, 2017 was a record year for Azamara in this market, with the business growing by an impressive 30%. Looking at 2018, the UK market is in a fantastic position already, having generated more revenue for 2018 at this point than in 2015 overall. What’s more, repeat guest levels from the UK are the highest for the brand overall.
"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."
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Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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