Legend of the Seas of
Royal Caribbean International |
By Kim Tae-gyu
Staff Reporter
Mega-sized American and Italian cruise ships departing from Busan will debut this year.
The Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affaires (MLTM) said, "So far many cruise ships have visited Busan and other ports so that foreign travelers can visit tourist attractions in Korea. But from this year, major overseas operators will run the liners for Asian tourists, including Koreans, MLTM Director Park Gyung-cheol said.
Royal Caribbean International will bring its Legend of the Seas here next month early next month. The 70,000-ton ship, which can hold up to 2,074 passengers, will begin its first East Asian trip on April 2 in Busan.
About 450 Koreans booked tickets on the luxury vessel, which boasts of such facilities as a nine-hole miniature golf course, a rock-climbing wall, an on-deck jogging track and two spacious swimming pools.
Starting off at Busan for an eight-day trip, the ship will stop at Shanghai, Nagasaki, Kagoshima and Fukuoka before returning to Busan on April 9.
Fares range from 950,000 to 1.9 million won depending on the room but fares will go up during the peak summer season. The Legend of the Seas plans to travel the Korea-China-Japan route a total of 19 times this year. Tickets can be booked at 02) 737-0003.
"The reservations are almost made for about 500 tickets assigned for Korean clients on the April trip. We learned that Koreans are avid lovers of cruises," Royal Caribbean's Korean spokesperson Lisa Yun said.
Italy-based Costa Cruises will also bring a pair of ships dubbed Romantica and Classica here midway through this year. They will disembark from Busan and visit Chinese and Japanese cities.
The 53,049-ton Romantica has a passenger capacity of 1,356 while that of the 52,926-ton Classica is 1,308.
The two cruise ships of the Costa fleet, which boast numerous amenities, will combine to travel the East Asian routes around 20 times this year.
"As incomes of Koreans rise, the demand for cruises also increases. The operation of the three mega-sized vessels amply demonstrates the high upside potential of the Korean markets," MLTM Director Park said.
Last year, a total of 97 cruisers with around 77,000 tourists docked at Korean ports. The MLTM projects that the figures will jump to 150 vessels and 200,000 people this year.
voc200@koreatimes.co.kr
|
"北 휴대전화 요금이 무려... 놀라운 변화"
