norwegian jade became the first Norwegian Cruise Line cruise ship to begin sailing in the Mediterranean this year. The ship kicked off the European season for Norwegian Cruise Line as it departed Civitavecchia, Italy.
The NCL ship will cruise from Italy’s cruise capital before relocating to Piraeus, Greece, the same port from which norwegian jade became the first ship in the Norwegian Cruise Line fleet to resume sailing in 2021.
Norwegian Jade kicks off European cruise season
Although most of Europe is still struggling with persistent cold spells, that’s no reason not to organize cruises. That is why norwegian jade became Norwegian Cruise Line’s first cruise ship to resume operations in the Mediterranean.
Departing from Civitavecchia, the cruise capital of Italy, the port close to Rome, the cruise ship departed for a 9-night Greek Islands cruise visiting Palermo in Sicily; the beautiful and historic city of Valletta in Malta; Santorini and Rhodes in Greece; Kusadasi and Istanbul in Turkey; and ending with a visit to Mykonos in Greece. norwegian jade will end its first cruise in Piraeus, Greece on April 8.
On April 8, norwegian jade will make a second 9-day trip that will stop in Greece, Turkey, Israel and Cyprus.
From April 17, the Norwegian cruise ship will operate a series of 7-night cruises from Piraeus, with several different options available to guests, including stops in Ephesus in Turkey, Ashdod and Haifa in Israel, and ports in Greece such as Santorini, Patmos and Mykonos.
norwegian jade The Eastern Mediterranean season will last until the end of November 2022. After that, the ship will depart on an epic 18-day cruise along the East African coast towards Cape Town, South Africa.
Norwegian Jade First Again
It is not the first time norwegian jade becomes the first of the fleet to sail in Europe. Last year, the 93,558 gross ton cruise ship was the first fleet-wide Norwegian Cruise Line cruise ship to resume cruising after the global pause in operations.
norwegian jade departed Piraeus on July 26, 2021, the first time a Norwegian Cruise Line ship has sailed with passengers in 500 days.
At the time, Harry Sommer, President and CEO of Norwegian, said: “We are thrilled to embark on the Great Cruise Comeback with an all-new itinerary and homeport for our brand, offering our guests an even wider selection of unique vacations at sea.”
This big cruise comeback is still underway, although Norwegian has made great strides towards its goal of having all ships operational by summer 2022. For now, there are only four ships left:
- Norwegian Star from April 3, 2022 from Barcelona, Spain
- Pride of America starting April 9, 2022, from Honolulu, Hawai’i
- Norwegian Sun from May 5, 2022, from Seattle, Washington
- Norwegian Spirit from May 7, 2022, departing from Papeete, Tahiti
It’s not a bad effort from a cruise line that has been cautious and consistent in its approach to the pandemic over the past two years. So far, it seems the plans of Harry Sommer and NCLH CEO Frank De Rio have worked out pretty well.
