In its position as the world’s third largest cruise line, Norwegian Cruise Line is strengthening its presence in Barcelona, announcing a significant expansion of its operations in Barcelona for the 2025 summer season.

For the first time, the ship NCL Breakaway, with a capacity for 3,900 passengers, will have Barcelona as its home port, offering itineraries of between nine and eleven days. The first voyage is scheduled for March 28 and the last for October 28, 2025.

During this period, NCL has planned 15 roundtrip itineraries from Barcelona, with calls at destinations such as Naples, Civitavecchia (Rome) and Cagliari in Italy; Cannes in France; and the Spanish islands of Ibiza and Palma de Mallorca.

In addition, a two-day overnight stay in Livorno will be offered to explore the Tuscany region. Eight other itineraries will depart from Barcelona with final destination in Trieste, Italy.

Kevin Bubolz, NCL’s vice president for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, noted in an interview that the Spanish market is becoming increasingly attractive for the company.

As a sign of this interest, four other ships in the fleet (Norwegian Pearl, Norwegian Sky, Norwegian Dawn and Norwegian Jewel) will operate in the port of Barcelona during the high season. For example, the Norwegian Sky will depart on June 4 on an itinerary to the Greek Islands.

Bubolz emphasized that NCL’s business model seeks to attract not only domestic tourists, but also international travelers from markets such as the United States, Australia and the Middle East, encouraging them to explore Europe from Barcelona.

The executive described last summer as “magnificent” in terms of results for the company in Spain and was optimistic about winter sales and bookings for the summer of 2025.

Globally, NCL expects to close the year with a record 2.9 million passengers embarked on its three brands: Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises. Specifically, NCL could reach 2.5 million travelers by 2024.

As for cruise industry growth, Bubolz forecasts a steady 10% increase between 2024 and 2028. He noted that while global tourism has not yet fully recovered to pre-pandemic levels, cruises had already done so by the end of 2023. Bookings are at record highs, and cruises are selling out several months in advance, reflecting solid and growing demand.

This expansion of NCL in Barcelona reinforces the city’s position as a key hub for cruise tourism in the Mediterranean, offering travelers a wide range of destinations and experiences aboard state-of-the-art ships.

Did you know this news? What do you think it will mean for a Spanish city like Barcelona? Its seaport deserved a news of this caliber and from Interseas we are sure that it will be one of the world’s reference ports for cruise terminals in a few years.