The ‘Marella Voyager’ and the ‘Scenic Eclipse II’ celebrate this traditional ceremony with the port and destination authorities
Málaga, the 1st of June of 2023.- Málaga Port is the set for the christening of two cruises this week. The ships, the ‘Marella Voyager’ and the ‘Scenic Eclipse II’, have chosen the best destination to celebrate this traditional ceremony.
Representatives from the Port Authority, Málaga’s City Council, Tourism board of Costa del Sol, Tourism board of Andalucía, Málaga Cruise Port, Fundacion Málagaport, Suncruise Andalucia and the port agent, Intercruises, take part in organization and celebration related to the christenings.
The first christening, Wednesday, the 31st of May with the ‘Marella Voyager’
The British company Marella Cruises, offering trips in Europe, Caribbean and Asia, has an important connection with Málaga, because the cruise company has chosen this place to baptize 3 of its 5 cruises: ‘Marella Discovery 2’ in 2017; ‘Marella Explorer 2’ in 2019 and ‘Marella Voyager’ in 2023.
The ship
The flagship of the company will start operating in June 2023 with several itineraries in the Caribbean, Canary Islands and Western Mediterranean. It has 262 meters length, 13 decks, 952 cabins and a maximum capacity for 2.681 passengers.
About the baptism
The ‘Marella Voyager’, coming from the shipyard, was docked at Terminal A (Levante pier) from early Monday to Wednesday, May 31st until 23:59h. The ship embarked on its inaugural trip company employees and other industry professionals invited to the inaugural party.
On Tuesday, the port, city, province and region authorities went on board to celebrate the exchange of commemorative plaques with the Captain and his crew, because of this first and unique call.
Finally, on May 31st, the company celebrated the baptism of its new cruise, whose godmothers were two workers from the cruise company, who together have more than 40 years of experience in the cruise industry. They are the Chief Steward, Tatyana Olkhovskova, and the Destination Operations Manager, Jacqui Nobile.
As a final highlight, the company launched fireworks while the cruise ship sailed towards her next destination: Almería.
The second baptism, Saturday, the 3rd of June with the ‘Scenic Eclipse II’
This exclusive cruise ship visited for the first time Málaga Cruise Port the past April, before the baptism which will be the next Saturday the 3rd in the Terminal ‘El Palmeral’, after some exploration trips in Mediterranean destinations.
The event will also has a godmother who knows what it means to sail on a ship like this. She is the NASA scientist Kathy Sullivan, who, according to the company, has the values of "overcoming challenges, a passion for adventure, and a curiosity to discover the world around us." She has had a successful career dedicated to research and exploration.
The baptism will be celebrated by the passengers on board, and others 80 VIP guests and international media who will travel to Málaga to see this event and know, by first hand, the destination’s possibilities, which is a very interesting positioning’s opportunity. In fact, the local institutions offer trips to Mijas, Puerto Banus and Málaga City.
The cruise ship, which has 168 meters length and a maximum capacity for 228 passengers, has 2 helicopters on board and a tailor-made submarine to trips.
Nowadays, the cruise company is working with the port and the destination to offer an unique experience for this exclusive passengers, organizing sustainability activities, which is very important to the company. In this way, it has main objectives such as protecting the places who they visit, collaborating whit their communities and leaving the less mark possible.
Scenic considers Málaga as ‘an ideal port with very good facilities for both, passengers and crew. The proximity with the city, make it the perfect place for our guests to experience the vibrant atmosphere of the old town and the outdoor restaurants. We believe that Málaga is an important port for an ultra luxury cruise around the Mediterranean and it attracts a global audience with passengers from the UK, USA, Canada and Australia".
In 2022, the cruise company started the oceanic navigation with its first cruise ship, Scenic Eclipse, baptized in New York. The cruise company has chosen Málaga to premiere the Scenic Eclipse II.
The Australian company highlights for its continuous innovation in terms of the size of its cruise ships, the technology and the security.
The baptisms scheduled for this week place Malaga in the focus of international cruise tourism again, in a year in which it is expected to consolidate definitively the figures before the period of pandemic, because the sector sails at full capacity.
