Cruise Atlantic Europe Confirms Growth and Launches Biggest Ever Royalty Free Video and Photo-Library Showcasing its Cruise Destinations

LONDON, October 3, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --

Europe as a cruise destination is going from strength to strength. In particular the eight ports which make up Cruise Atlantic Europe (Lisbon, Porto (Leixoes), A Coruna, Bilbao, Brest, St Malo, Dover and Cork), are celebrating another year of growth. Better cruise facilities are welcoming more ships and providing an even better cruise experience, plus eight fantastic HD destination videos provide a fantastic opportunity to see just what Atlantic Europe has to offer.

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Next year promises to be another successful one for the region. Every month more cruise companies are choosing to visit Cruise Atlantic Europe ports and already the number of port calls booked for 2012 have exceeded 2011 and are still rising. In addition 30% more cruisers are enjoying the region than in 2009. This growth is being supported by investment at the ports.

Lisbon and Porto have opened new cruise piers to cope with demand and at Lisbon this means the port can offer over 1,900m of cruise ship berths. At Porto cruise ships of up to 300m length will now be able to dock and in October 2011 construction work commences for the new passenger terminal at Leixoes (due for completion by the end of 2013). With the development of a new terminal at A Coruna, eight cruise lines will visit the port for the first time in 2012. St Malo has also invested in refurbishment to improve berths and tender piers to give cruise lines and their customers easy access to the historic city centre.

In addition Cruise Atlantic Europe has eight new destination videos in HD, a photo and video-library and a range of leaflets promoting the ports. The libraries, which contain hundreds of high resolution images and over 1900 video clips shot in full HD, cover all the major sights not only in the ports themselves, but also nearby tourist attractions. Shot in over 150 locations, they provide the most comprehensive coverage ever of these destinations. The eight destination videos entitled "In the space of one day", showcase some of the new video footage and provide a vibrant insight as to the many attractions available to visitors.

Helena Fernandes from Cruise Atlantic Europe explains: "Each year Cruise Atlantic Europe ports grow in popularity. What we have now with our new video and photo-library - which we believe may be the largest ever made available - is the opportunity to ensure more people have the opportunity to find out about all the wonderful destinations and attractions Atlantic Europe has to offer, including 14 UNESCO World Heritage sites and three European Capitals of Culture. For cruise operators this is coupled with the knowledge of our continued investment, better facilities and the opportunity to maximise on the benefits the ports offer."

The new videos can be viewed at http://www.cruiseatlanticeurope.com and cruise operators are encouraged to contact Cruise Atlantic Europe to find out more about how to access the destination material to use for themselves without any cost.

About Cruise Atlantic Europe

Launched within the framework of the Atlantic Area Trans-national Programme, Cruise Atlantic Europe is the initiative of a group of ports on the Atlantic front - Lisbon, Porto (Leixoes), A Coruna, Bilbao, Brest, St Malo, Dover and Cork. Its aim is to reinforce the position of the Atlantic Area in the European cruise market and to boost revenue from tourism activities.