After two successful trial voyages, China’s first domestically built large cruise ship Adora Magic City launched its maiden commercial voyage on January 1. The ship left from Shanghai Wusongkou International Cruise Terminal to the classic tourist destinations in Northeast Asia.
During the first trial, shipbuilder China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) conducted overall stress tests and adjustments on maritime performance, safe navigation, ship-shore linkage, business model, service process, customer experience and other aspects.
The second trial voyage was an international cruise route to Kagoshima, Japan, and Jeju, South Korea. CSSC completed customs clearance and coordinated for upstream arrangements with local agencies, to offer customers a smoother boarding and disembarkation experience and richer excursion itinerary.
Also read: CSSC starts construction of second domestically built cruise ship
First cruise
It is the first time China has built a large-scale cruise ship itself, whereas Europe has been the cruise ship builder par excellence so far. In the early morning of New Year’s Day in 2024, the Adora Magic City docked at Shanghai Wusongkou International Cruise Port, from where the ship operates international cruise routes to Northeast Asia.
In terms of navigation support, the chief architect of the cruise ship project of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of CSSC, led a cruise support team composed of eighteen engineers to escort the maiden voyage throughout the entire process.
At 3 p.m., all passengers on the maiden voyage were ready to board the ship, starting the seven-day maiden voyage from Shanghai to Jeju (Seogwipo), South Korea, and Nagasaki and Fukuoka, Japan. At 4:45 in the afternoon, with the whistle blowing, the Adora Magic City sailed away from the port.
Picture by CSSC.
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