King Abdulaziz Port docks its first-ever cruise ship

King Abdulaziz Port in Dammam has today welcomed MSC World Europa with 6,000 passengers on board in a historic moment for the Kingdom’s trade gateway and Cruise Saudi, the national cruise ecosystem developer, according to Mawani's release.
 
The passenger ship’s arrival is set to bolster the bid of the Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani) to position the Kingdom as a major port of call for global maritime traffic, while at the same time fulfilling the ambitions of the National Transport and Logistics Strategy (NTLS) in building a world-class logistics hub offering top-tier services.
 
The Arabian Gulf port will feature regularly in the LNG-powered vessel’s weekly itinerary during the ongoing third cruise season, which also includes calls at Doha, Dubai, and Abu Dhabi.
 
Mawani and Cruise Saudi have pursued a joint growth strategy to build a full-scale local cruise industry and place the Kingdom on the global map as a premier cruise hub. As part of their continuing collaboration, Jeddah Islamic Port, King Abdulaziz Port, and Yanbu Commercial Port have been upgraded with the right mix of infrastructure and facilities to serve the increasing number of cruise calls.
 
Since its launch in January 2021, the Saudi cruise season has successfully concluded two editions which saw over 70 sailings and 50,000 tourists make their way into the Kingdom’s shores.​