Royal Caribbean International will deploy its Liberty of the Seas cruise ship in Barcelona next year.
The move follows RCI’s conviction that the cruise ship sector in Spain is growing at an annual rate of 8-10% with cruise ship operators ploughing huge investment sums into the market.
RCI says its Spanish office predicts a 60% growth in guest volume in 2010 from Spain, compared with a growth of 30 percent in 2009.
Managing director of Royal Caribbean Cruises Spain Belén Wangüemert said: “As well as bringing in new ships, we have also significantly increased our staff in Spain so that we can achieve a growth of 60 percent, allowing us to offer almost 100,000 berths. The arrival of Liberty of the Seas in 2011 will consolidate our position as one of the top brands in the market.”
By Dinah Hatch
