Trade bookings up 21% for Azamara Club Cruises

Azamara Club Cruises, the high-end brand owned by Royal Caribbean, announces rise in trade business as it christens Pursuit in Southampton

Trade bookings for Azamara Club Cruises are up by 21 per cent, the company’s president and CEO Larry Pimentel said at the naming ceremony of its new ship, Azamara Pursuit.

Ahead of a short sailing to Cherbourg, France, last month, the Royal Caribbean-owned line christened the ship in Southampton. The vessel, which was originally built for Renaissance Cruises, joins Azamara Quest and Azamara Journey in the fleet. Azamara owns three of the eight ships built for the defunct cruise line.The company said that Pursuit, which previously sailed under P&O Cruises as Adonia, has been embraced by British customers, who feel a strong connection to the ship.

Carol Cabezas, the company’s COO, said that when the vessel was first launched, Brits accounted for 50 per cent of all bookings – way up on the usual 25 per cent.Pimentel said that the ship, which represents 50 per cent growth for the line, means 40 per cent new destinations for guests. Pursuit, which visits 73 destinations including 15 maiden ports, will sail from Europe to South America, where it will visit Antofagasta (Chile), Lima (Peru), and sail the Beagle Channel.It will sail from South Africa in 2020.

“We’re a family with a mission because this is a brand with a purpose,” said Pimentel. “Today paints a picture of how far we’ve come, and how far we have to go.”

Meanwhile, the company’s UK managing director Richard Twynam has been given an expanded role that will encompass the EMEA region.

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