Portsmouth Worldwide Port wrapped up its summer season 2024 cruise season with Virgin Voyages’ Resilient Girl departing for the final time on September 29, 2024.
In a fond farewell, the 110,000-gross-ton Resilient Girl set off for Barcelona, Spain, with the final of Portsmouth, England’s complete of 25,000 passengers to sail this summer season season.
The ship confirmed its gratitude to its homeport with town’s blue “Pompey” nickname illuminated as she sailed previous town’s Victorious Pageant, one of many largest music festivals within the U.Okay., held yearly within the southern coastal metropolis.
The ship’s farewell concluded Portsmouth’s busiest summer season cruise season so far. The town welcomed over 25,000 passengers and hosted its largest-ever variety of turnaround calls, becoming for the port because it marked the primary anniversary of its carbon-neutral terminal extension.
The extension allowed the port to handle each giant cruise volumes and common ferry operations and helped Portsmouth function Resilient Girl’s homeport.
Dubbed Virgin’s “U.Okay. dwelling port” now that it has hosted all three of the corporate’s manufacturers because it launched in 2021, Portsmouth estimates Resilient Girl generated £1.5 million from passenger spending throughout every go to.
Along with Resilient Girl’s common voyages, the summer season season additionally featured particular occasions, together with Virgin’s fiftieth anniversary with founder Richard Branson, and a comedy-themed cruise headlined by Russell Howard.
The high-profile occasions helped additional spotlight Portsmouth’s position as a key vacation spot for Virgin Voyages.
“Each cruise name to the port is very valued and an excellent increase to town,” mentioned Cllr Steve Pitt, chief of Portsmouth Metropolis Council.
“I do know a variety of our residents have been fortunate sufficient to get pleasure from Resilient Girl’s voyages from Portsmouth to Europe this summer season, and her sailings are at all times a formidable sight within the harbor,” he mentioned.
Wanting forward, Portsmouth is ready to proceed its partnership with Virgin Voyages, with Scarlet Girl scheduled to return in 2025.
The port can be making ready to supply shoreside electrical energy for future Virgin ships, supporting town’s efforts to boost its environmental credentials and proceed its progress.
Due to the U.Okay. government-funded Sea Change mission, the port will develop into the nation’s first zero-emission port by spring 2025.
Cruises Proceed as Port Prepares for Inexperienced Transformation
Whereas celebrating a robust summer season, the port, situated 20 miles southeast of bigger sister port Southampton, will nonetheless see exercise into the top of 2024 because the homeport to the English-based Saga Cruise’s Spirit of Journey and Spirit of Discovery, each of which may accommodate 999 passengers.
The 58,250-gross-ton ships are remaining to supply fall and early winter voyages from Portsmouth to the Canary Islands.
The British-owned Fred Olsen Cruise Line can be using the port for its Northern Lights cruises. The cruise line’s 61,849-gross-ton, 1,360-passenger Borealis is providing a number of roundtrip voyages from Portsmouth to Norwegian locations.
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The port can be making ready to supply shoreside electrical energy for future cruise ships, supporting town’s efforts to boost its environmental credentials and proceed its progress.
The port is ready to develop into the U.Okay.’s first zero-emission port by spring 2025, because of the U.Okay. government-funded Sea Change mission. Securing £19.8 million in grants, the port will permit docked ships to modify off their engines and depend on renewable vitality, considerably decreasing emissions.
