The international cruise season at Ports of Stockholm (Sweden) kicks off this weekend with the arrival of Fred Olsen's ship Bolette at Port Nynashamn. A total of 126 cruise ship calls are scheduled for 2023, which is the highest number among all the Swedish ports.
Season 2023 begins on Sunday, April 16th, with the arrival of Bolette in Nynashamn. Two days later, on April 18th, the season's second ship - AIDAmar, will dock at Stockholm's Stadsgarden Quay. The season runs until the end of October and includes a total of 126 ship calls.
Despite the ongoing interest in Stockholm as a cruise destination, the number of cruise ship calls in the Northern Baltic Sea has been impacted by the war in Ukraine. In a typical year, the Ports of Stockholm would have more than twice the number of cruise ship calls.
Globally, the cruise industry has recovered from the challenging years during the COVID crisis, except in the Northern Baltic Sea. Ports of Stockholm, a member of Cruise Baltic and Cruise Europe, is working with other ports in the region, including Helsinki and Tallinn, to invest and plan for a return to normal levels of cruise ship calls, aiming for around 300 cruise ship calls per season.
Image: Port of Stockholm (Sweden)
Ports of Stockholm is also collaborating with other ports in Copenhagen/Malmo, Aarhus, and Helsinki to promote sustainability in the cruise segment. Through EU grant funding, they are investing in onshore power connection facilities for cruise ships, which allows them to turn off their auxiliary engines while in port. As part of the project, Ports of Stockholm will install onshore power facilities at quay-berths S167 (ready in 2023) and S160 (ready in 2024) at the city's central Stadsgarden quay.