Halal Menus, Family Suites: How Cruises Are Tailoring Experiences For UAE, GCC Guests

Cruising is steadily gaining popularity in the Middle East, with several international liners tailoring their offerings to attract guests from the region. This was highlighted during a leadership summit for cruise professionals, where experts discussed the growing demand. Many cruise lines are now introducing halal food options and accommodating large families with interconnected cabins to cater to cultural and familial needs.

Mohamed Saeed, Middle East managing director at Royal Caribbean Group shared how his team welcomed over 600 Saudi guests on one cruise.“Two years ago, we had over 600 guests, all from Saudi. We made green cupcakes to reflect the Saudi flag. We played Arabic music, and even booked an entire venue for them, even though many of them didn't know each other.

"Since then, we've been welcoming a mix of GCC guests each year, who appreciate gestures like Arabic-speaking crew, Arabic support in the daily compass, and alcohol-free desserts in our restaurants, among others," he said, adding that these cultural adaptations were encouraging more guests from the Middle East to try out cruising.

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Meerah Ketait, head of retail and leisure at Dnata Travel said that the company had seen a 17 percent increase in cruise travelers this year as compared to the previous year.

Meerah highlighted a key trend: Middle Eastern travellers often journey with multi-generational families, which poses unique requirements for cruises.“If families are traveling together, the last thing you want is for people to be on different decks,” she said.“Entertainment must be suited for both children and adults, as the experience of the adults depends on the kids being engaged.”

Meanwhile, Mohamed added that Royal Caribbean is building one of the world's largest ships with family-friendly spaces such as theme parks and water parks to accommodate multi-generational travellers.

Lakshmi Durai, CEO of CruiseXplore said that there was a“real appetite” in the region for luxury, prestige, and novelty, making it the ideal market to sell luxury cruises and immersive experiences.

Despite the rising interest, only one per cent of the Middle East's population has gone on cruises, compared to 50 to 60 per cent in the United States, Lakshmi noted, highlighting that the low awareness was an opportunity.

Celestyal Cruises, which homeported out of Abu Dhabi and Doha for the first time last year, has been educating locals through short“taster” cruises.“We offer three-night weekend trips as a great way for families to try cruising for the first time,” said Anna Gregori, VP of brand, PR, and customer experience.“These trips also include some destination immersion, offering something that's a little bit different than a usual trip.”

Ghada Marghalani, director of branding and communications at Saudi Arabia's Aroya Cruises, shared how her company tailored offerings to attract local guests.“Ramadan was just three months after our launch, and we saw an opportunity to adapt the product,” she said.“We offered single-day cruises, changed the ship's cruise programmes, and served food from sunset until 3 or 4am. There were lots of preparations involved and we were welcoming at least 2,000 guests every day.”

She added that the efforts paid off because it was an entry point for guests to try the cruise.“We had many guests who came later, and we even had bookings being done on spot for future cruises,” she said.

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