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Star Cruises Set For October Debut On West Coast
To Consider Eastern Circuit Next Summer
Bhisham Mansukhani - Mumbai
Following a five-year presence in the Indian market as popular
outbound cruise company, Star Cruises introduced its first, historic domestic
luxury cruise in April. The domestic cruise stitches together the port of embarkation
Mumbai along with Goa, Kochi and Lakshadweep. Star Cruises' latest acquisition,
SuperStar Libra, will service the Indian circuit and is expected to sail into
Mumbai's port on September 25, 2005. Super Star Libra will begin its four-night
destination cruises to Kadmat in Lakshadweep and Goa. Two-night cruises to Goa
and one-night weekend getaway cruises from October 2, 2005 through to April
2006. Special cruises to Kochi and Goa have also been planned for December 25,
January 29, February 12 and February 26, 2006.
To showcase the launch nationwide, Star Cruises held a week-long roadshow in
five cities namely Mumbai, New Delhi, Ahmedabad, Kolkata and Chennai in the
second week of April. SuperStar Libra is set to dock for the first time in Mumbai,
this September.
Star Cruises COO Chong Chee-Tut himself launched the cruise
in all five cities. "We have been looking forward to this historic launch
for many months. The availability of port infrastructure and facilities was
the only real concern. The natural resource though was never in doubt. For now,
we will go ahead with cruises on the western coast although the weather does
get rough during the summer. Therefore the East Indian coast with ports like
Chennai and neighbouring Sri Lankan capital Colombo could be a good summer season
proposition."
 Chong
hailed the government's decision to consider a tax holiday for the cruise segment
and highlighted their `landmark' waiver on cabotage requirement for cruise ships
for five years. "It reflects the Indian government's long-term commitment
to this segment of tourism. It is very beneficial to us as the cruise duration
can be shorter as we don't have to include a foreign port in our itinerary,
which allows us to keep costs lower. This allows us access to a huge domestic
market of first time cruisers. The two and three-night cruises will be the ideal
way to get more people to enjoy this form of vacation," Chong averred.
Chong foresees an explosion in the number of cruisers in India now that the
airfare component of the cruise package will be taken out of the equation.
Mumbai Port Trust chairman, Rani Jadhav who attended the Mumbai leg of the launch,
commented, "The product is great and the timing couldn't be better. This
will encourage a lot of the typically outbound tourists to take the domestic
cruise and generate tourism revenue for the country." SuperStar Libra can
house 1,500 passengers and boasts an array of facilities, entertainment, recreational
activities and services. It's 740-cabin inventory can accommodate up to 1,480
passengers and its restaurant compendium includes an Indian restaurant Taj by
the Bay and continental restaurant, Four Seasons. "Our sales and marketing
efforts will be intensified accordingly to create greater awareness in India",
Chong said.
Star Cruises will also promote the Indian cruise to its international clientele
that vacations in India as an attractive option to land based holidays, thereby
driving more inbound to India
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