A leap of faith
This cruise ship is set to bring more tourists to malaysia with its long-term south-east asia season.
TAKE a leap into the future of cruising when you step on board Royal Caribbean’s latest ship to be deployed to South-east Asia on a long-term stint.
Quantum of the Seas, which has undergone a multi-million dollar refurbishment, will be the first in the cruise line’s fleet to be deployed to the region for this fiveyear stint, Royal Caribbean managing director, Asia Pacific, Angie Stephen announced during a recent media showcase on board the ship at Port Klang, Selangor.
The ship will be homeported in Singapore for six months, and the deployment is expected to bring more tourists to Malaysia and the region.
Stephen said that the ship will be making a record-breaking 55 calls to Malaysia during its 2020-2021 season, which starts in October next year. Together with the ship’s current 2019-2020 season, Royal Caribbean is set to bring a total of 430,000 tourists to Malaysia in the next two years. An estimated 189,000 of these tourists will visit Port Klang over 43 ship calls to the destination.
According to Stephen, the announcement reveals Royal Caribbean’s confidence in the flourishing cruise industry of Malaysia and the region, which has shown tremendous growth potential in recent years.
“We are committed to growing the local cruise market, and aim to continue bringing in bigger and better ships to Malaysia and the region. This not only enables guests to experience our innovative first-at-sea offerings, but also to discover the many attractions Malaysia has to offer,” she said.
“Travellers can look forward to unique experiences when they arrive on Malaysia’s ports – from gastronomical adventures to cultural and shopping options in Kuala Lumpur and Penang, which are popular destinations with our guests,” she added.
According to Stephen, Malaysia plays a very important role in the future of Royal Caribbean International’s cruises for two reasons.
“The biggest challenge for cruise growth in Asia is infrastructure and there are only 10 ports in South-east Asia that can accommodate a ship of this size. And Malaysia is already steps ahead because you can already accommodate our largest ships in the region, and that is a great collective effort between government, tourism, and port infrastructure,” Stephen said.
“The second reason is Malaysians love to cruise on Royal Caribbean and we’ve grown Malaysian guests on our cruise lines over 20 times since we started sailing in Asia 11 years ago,” she added.
It has been an exciting year for the cruise company as it celebrates its 50th global anniversary. It is currently the largest cruise line in the world with 26 ships sailing around the world.
Quantum of the Seas’ multi-million dollar refurbishment includes new amenities on board such as an “escape room” and a glow-in-thedark laser tag game. These as well as other offerings like the North Star observation pod and Two70 hi-tech entertainment venue will raise the bar for multi-generational travel experiences.
Other offerings on board include the Flowrider surf simulator, Ripcord by ifly indoor skydiving, Seaplex sports venue which offers bumper cars, basketball courts and more, as well as the Bionic Bar, a robotic bartender that “dances” to music while it mixes drinks.
The ship can accommodate a total of 4,905 guests with its 2,094 staterooms. There are 16 decks, including 14 for guests, and it is staffed by an international crew of 1,500.
With the homeporting of Royal Caribbean’s Quantum class in South-east Asia, Malaysians will see its cruise ships once or twice a week for the next five years.
Quantum of the Seas’ itineraries will include four-night cruises to Penang and Phuket, five-night cruises to Phuket, KL (Port Klang) and Penang, a seven-night cruise to Phuket (with an overnight), KL and Penang, and a seven-night cruise to Bangkok (Laem Chabang) and Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam.
For more information, visit: www.royalcaribbean.com.