Aroya departs Bremerhaven, heading for maiden season out of Saudi Arabia in Red Sea

AROYA Cruises first vessel, Aroya, has left Bremerhaven, Germany, bound for her new homeport in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, ahead of a maiden season in the Red Sea due to begin on December 16th, 2024.

Aroya was purchased by Cruise Saudi, the parent company of AROYA Cruises, in 2023 when Genting Hong Kong filed for bankruptcy amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Then called World Dream, the cruise ship has undergone one of the largest cruise ship refit projects in the world, with 95% of its interiors reimagined during a months-long drydock in Bremerhaven and Rotterdam.

The new Aroya, reimagined from bow to stern, features a souq-inspired shopping area that the cruise line says is one of the largest on any cruise ship, a state-of-the-art spa, 29 dining options, 20 entertainment venues, and one of the largest children’s play areas at sea.

The ship’s maiden voyage will take passengers on a 3-night roundtrip cruise from Jeddah to a private Red Sea island developed by Cruise Saudi. Other cruise destinations in the Red Sea during her inaugural season include Aqaba in Jordan and ports in Egypt.

Aroya is unlike any other mainstream cruise ship afloat, offering a distinctively Arabian cruise experience in the Red Sea. She is the first ship designed specifically for the Middle Eastern cruise market, and at 150,000 gross tons and carrying upwards of 3,500 passengers, is a $300 million gamble on the potential popularity of cruises among the local source market.

Aroya will feature an onboard experience unlike anything else in the industry. She will be the only major cruise ship in operation that is run as a ‘dry ship’, with no alcohol served onboard (whether in Saudi waters or not).

It’s a huge risk for AROYA Cruises, but the brand is betting that there is a larger enough cruise source market in the Arab world to fill the ship on its Red Sea itineraries without having to rely on international fly-cruise guests. 

There is also no casino aboard Aroya. Instead of bars and casinos, public spaces aboard the ship are given over to cultural enrichment, relaxation and entertainment. 

These features of the onboard experience reflect AROYA Cruises’ position as the Arab world’s first domestic cruise line. Never before has a homegrown cruise brand specifically targeted the local market in this way.

The market’s reaction to the brand in the coming years will prove whether this approach is scalable, and may see major international brands adapting their offering in the Gulf to match.

Already, Resorts World Cruises has made a major play for the local market with similar changes enacted during its first ever cruise season in the Arabian Gulf out of Dubai.