Superstar Virgo homeports in Manila
Sunday saw Hong Kong-based cruise line Star Cruises starting the three-month deployment of Superstar Virgo to Manila for the first time.
Virgo began its maiden voyage on its Manila-Laoag-Kaohsiung-Hong Kong-Manila route last Sunday, March 19. The 2,400-passenger, 13-storey cruise ship will embark on a 6-day, 5-night cruise that will take it to Laoag, Kaohsiung, and Hong Kong before returning to Manila.
Virgo has over 10 restaurants, various options for entertainment, an outdoor pool with a 100-meter mega water slide, mini-golf, gym, and sauna. Filipinos and foreigners alike will not have a problem interacting with the crew onboard as most of them are Filipino.
Star Cruises President Ang Moo Lim earlier said that Filipinos can enjoy the cruise without having to think about baggage allowances or getting a visa for Taiwan.
Tourism Secretary Wanda Corazon T. Teo, on the other hand, said Star Cruises is looking to set up more home ports in the Philippines. She also sees the deployment of Virgo as a “sure sign” that the Philippines will be a major international cruise hub in the future.
“As the first-ever cruise ship to homeport in Manila, Superstar Virgo etches a milestone in our tourism journey, as both the ship and our shores will provide vacationers, including the locals, the convenience of not having to fly to either Hong Kong or Singapore to take a cruise,” she said during the ceremony last Sunday.
Source: Philippine News Agency, The Manila Times, BusinessMirror
