Norwegian Cruise Line adds Cape Town sailings for 2024/25 South Africa cruise season

Norwegian Cruise Line has expanded its South African cruise offerings for the upcoming 2024/25 cruise season, with two ships set to sail voyages from Cape Town.

The cruise line will be offering itineraries on two vessels, Norwegian Dawn and Norwegian Sky, with the latter making her South African debut in December when she sails for Mauritius.

Norwegian Sky will depart December 7th, 2024 for Port Louis, Maritius, a 13-night cruise that includes port calls in Mossel Bay, Port Elizabeth, Durban, and Richard’s Bay in South Africa, as well as Madagascar and Reunion.

Norwegian Sky will then continue on to Singapore where she’ll sail a range of Southeast Asian itineraries before crossing the Indian Ocean for calls in the Middle East, including Dubai, from which she’ll sail a 14-night cruise for Mauritius on April 19th, 2025.

Norwegian Sky will return to South Africa in May when she sails a 21-night grand voyage from Cape Town to Barcelona up the west coast of Africa. Departing May 14th, 2025, the cruise includes port calls in Namibia, Angola, Sao Tome and Principe, Gambia, Senegal, and the Canary Islands.

These cruises from South Africa aboard Norwegian Sky are in addition to Norwegian Dawn’s South African cruise season, which features a range of alternating cruises from Cape Town to Mauritius and Mauritius to Cape Town between November 2024 and May 2025. 

Kevin Bubolz, VP and Managing Director Continental Europe, Middle East, and Africa at Norwegian Cruise Line expects these itineraries to be popular amongst South Africans, particularly due to the absence of long-haul flights and the opportunity to travel more cost-effectively – seeing multiple destinations for the price of one.

“Travellers have the chance to explore more of southern Africa, combined with a beach holiday in Mauritius (which remains South Africans’ top international travel destination) once their cruise comes to an end,” he said. 

“Alternatively, travellers can fly to Mauritius first and return home via one of our cruises, visiting Reunion, Madagascar, Mozambique, and other beautiful ports along the SA coast before disembarking in Cape Town,” he added. 

NCL’s expanded offerings are well-timed, coinciding with Cape Town’s increased focus on attracting and accommodating more cruise ships, and international cruise line’s growing interest in Cape Town and South Africa amid the ongoing Red Sea security crisis. 

Travis Stedman, Business Development Manager of Cruise Cape Town, says the city has experienced significant growth in cruise tourism since 2022.

“The 2022/23 cruise season saw 70 ships docking at the Cape Town Cruise Terminal, bringing in approximately 145,000 passengers and 42,000 crew members. 

According to Stedman, Cruise Cape Town’s vision for the future of tourism focuses on establishing the city and the broader Western Cape as a premier global cruise destination with the City of Cape Town aiming to use its natural beauty, cultural heritage, and strategic location to attract more cruise liners.

“The ‘Cruise Cape Town’ initiative, led by Wesgro and other key stakeholders, is central to this vision, emphasising sustainable growth, economic development, and global competitiveness,” he added.