Saudi Cruise Line Renames First Ship in Its Fleet

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Aroya Cruises has officially named its first ship Aroya, a 3,362-guest vessel slated to debut in December 2024, offering itineraries from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, geared to the regional Arabian market.

Cruise Saudi, a publicly funded tourism entity that is spearheading Saudi Arabiaโ€™s plans to become a leading tourism destination, announced the name change. The tourism entity launched Aroya Cruises in June 2023, following the acquisition of the ship.

The vessel, which launched in 2017, has a complicated history for so young a ship. Her construction was started by Star Cruises under the name World Dream but was transferred to Dream Cruises during the building process.

Cruise Saudi bought the ship at auction after Dream Cruisesโ€™ parent company, Genting Hong Kong, went bankrupt in 2022. The ship was initially renamed Manara.

Bookings opened in May 2024, and by then Aroya Cruises was already calling the ship Aroya. No specifics about a renaming or christening ceremony were revealed, but the announcement noted that the new name is a combination of Arabian and roya, which translates to โ€œvisionโ€ or โ€œdream.โ€

We are delighted to have officially renamed our first Aroya Cruises ship to Aroya. The name evokes a sense of wanderlust and excitement, which passengers feel from the moment they step aboard,โ€ said Joerg Rudolph, president of Aroya Cruises.ย 

โ€œWe are looking forward to the launch in December 2024. A new very modern form of vacation is being introduced by Aroya in the Arab world,โ€ added Rudolph.

The 151,000-gross ton ship is currently undergoing an extensive refit at a German shipyard, and will offer 1,678 staterooms in a mix of balcony and sea view cabins plus suites and villas.

With 18 decks and 1,600 crew members, the ship is envisioned as a floating resort with a wide array of dining and entertainment options.

Read Also: River Cruise vs. Ocean Cruise – Whatโ€™s the Difference?

The 1,018-seat Aroya Theatre will present live performances and movies, and a childrenโ€™s zone will offer 20,000 square feet of activity space, including a large water park with water slides and a splash zone.

Exclusive spaces for women will be featured as well, including a dedicated pool, gym, and thermal spa. A full-service spa, called Blossom, will provide a range of services and treatments to both men and women.

Guests can also book a luxury experience called Khuzama, which features suite and villa accommodations and premium amenities such as priority boarding, VIP lounge access, an exclusive dining venue, and butler service.

Inaugural Cruise Series Focuses on Red Sea Region

Aroya Cruises, which operates as a separate entity from Cruise Saudi, detailed its planned cruise departures when sales opened earlier this year.

Aroyaโ€™s maiden voyage is slated to depart on December 16, 2024, on a 3-day sailing roundtrip from Jeddah. The itinerary includes cruising the Red Sea and calling at a private island destination owned by Cruise Saudi.

New Aroya Cruises Ship
New Aroya Cruises Ship

Similar itineraries of 3 and 4 days are planned through May 2025. Four-day cruises that begin on January 5, 2025 will visit Egyptโ€™s resort town of Sharm El Sheikh, located on the Sinai Peninsula, during the โ€œWorld of Discoveriesโ€ voyage, or Al Aqaba, Jordan, where guests can visit Petra on the โ€œCultures from the Depths of the Seaโ€ journey.

Longer cruises are offered, too. A 6-day โ€œLegacy of the Desert and the Wavesโ€ sailing, also from Jeddah, will call at both Al Aqaba and Sharm El Sheik, with an overnight call in the Egyptian city. A 7-day cruise adds Cairo, Egypt, to the itinerary.

These itineraries are similar to scores of cruises that were cancelled by European and other Western cruise lines after war broke out in the Middle East in October 2023. Most cruise lines altered planned routes to avoid the Red Sea, Suez Canal, and Arabian Sea areas.

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Donna Tunney
Donna Tunney
Donna Tunney is a travel news/feature writer and editor with 20-plus years covering cruise news, luxury travel, and Europe and UK destinations. A former staffer at Travel Weekly and at the USAToday Network, she also was a luxury travel columnist at Travel Market Report, and a cruise columnist at Sherman's Travel.

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