The Excellence Cruise Awards ceremony will be held on February 21st, with Cartagena hosting the 12th edition and the Gala for the fourth consecutive year. The city was chosen, among other factors, due to the Port of Cartagena's consolidation as one of the Spanish destinations that has experienced the greatest growth in recent years. For 2019, it has scheduled more than 160 port calls with over 270,000 passengers.
The cruise industry is experiencing exponential growth with an ever-increasing order book, with 24 new ships in 2019 and 112 more scheduled to enter service by 2027. It is a prominent industry within the tourism sector, generating over €1.48 billion in Spain.
Cruises News Media Group, organizer of the International Cruise Summit in Madrid and publisher of CruisesNews and TopRiver magazines, has been awarding the Cruise Excellence Awards since 2008, based on votes cast by cruise passengers in the following categories:
- Best Spanish Port
- Best Crew
- Best Popular Company
- Best Entertainment
- Best Shipping Company for the Price
- Best Premium Shipping Company
- Best Luxury Cruise Line
- Best Ship in the Mediterranean
- Best Ship in Northern Europe
- Best Gastronomy
- Best Itinerary
- Better brand image among consumers
- Best River Tourism Company
- Best Cruise Line for Your First Cruise
- Best Brand Recognition among Travel Agencies
The ceremony will bring together, as every year, the main executives of cruise shipping companies, cruise tour operators, shipping agents, ports and destinations, travel agents, press, collaborators, professionals and businesspeople from Cartagena and Murcia, and other suppliers in the sector.
More than 300 attendees will fill the El Batel Auditorium and enjoy a unique gala evening at this twelfth celebration of awards whose previous editions were held in Barcelona, Malaga, Bilbao and Palma de Mallorca.
This edition, promoted and sponsored by the Cartagena Port Authority, the Cartagena City Council and the Murcia Region Tourism Institute, also has the sponsorship of the Association of Maritime Activities Entrepreneurs (ASEAM), Blázquez Cruises Maritime Agency, Cruises Atlantic Islands, Planout and Erhard Mediterráneo, among others.
