Ponant and Silversea Plan More Philippine Cruises Through 2028
Luxury cruise lines are scheduling longer Philippine stays that call at lesser-known islands, with sailings from June 2027 to February 2028.
Luxury cruise lines including Ponant and Silversea are planning more sailings to the Philippines in the coming years, with longer stays and calls at lesser-known islands.
Shan Dioquino David, CEO and president of CITTI Elite, the preferred sales agent in the Philippines for Silversea, Ponant and Scenic Cruises, said most clients who have booked are travelling from all over the world. "Domestic travellers are very minimal," David said.
Itineraries on the calendar
Ponant's nine-day cruise aboard Le Soléal is scheduled for 3 to 11 February 2028. It will sail from Manila to Iloilo in the Visayas, then to the islands of Kalanggaman, Limasawa and Higatangan in Leyte and Sibuyan in Romblon, before calling at Calapan in Oriental Mindoro and returning to Manila.
The company's Horizons of East Asia and the Philippines cruise, running from 23 October to 5 November 2027, covers 14 days. It visits Busan in South Korea, Shanghai in China, Japan and Taiwan, plus four days in the Philippines at Batanes, Claveria in Cagayan, Hundred Islands in Pangasinan and Manila.
Silversea's Silver Cloud will run an expedition cruise from 9 to 23 June 2027 covering Darwin in Australia, Malaysia and Indonesia, with nine days in the Philippines and shore excursions in Luzon and the Visayas. The same ship will then sail from Manila to Darwin from 23 June to 14 July 2027, with stops in Malaysia and Indonesia and six days in the Philippines.
Silver Muse is due to sail from 5 to 19 December 2027 on a Taiwan, Philippines and Malaysia itinerary that includes Manila, Coron and Puerto Princesa in Palawan. Scenic Cruises, which visited the Philippines in 2025, is scheduled to return in 2028.
David said itineraries featuring lesser-known provincial destinations are drawing interest from luxury expedition cruise operators, pointing to the country's more than 7,000 islands, beaches and cultural heritage. "Post-pandemic, luxury travel trends have spiked interest in upscale, experiential expedition cruising across South-east Asia, especially in the Philippines," David explained.
Source: TTG Asia