Royal Caribbean to offer year-round cruises from New Orleans

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Royal Caribbean will begin year-round cruises from New Orleans beginning in January.

The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate reports the 2,744-passenger Majesty of the Seas will begin sailing out of the Port of New Orleans in 2020 and run through April 2021. It will sail on seven-night voyages — Saturday to Saturday — to the Bahamas and western Caribbean.

The port already is home to year-round cruises by two Carnival ships and to winter-season cruises aboard Norwegian Cruise Lines.

Royal Caribbean returned to New Orleans on a seasonal basis from December 2018 to March with the 2,435-passenger Vision of the Seas.

In 2018 Port NOLA set a record with 1.18 million cruise passengers and 235 ship calls. The port anticipates about 1.45 million cruise passengers and 341 ship calls in 2020.