London, April 27, 2004: Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL), the Freestyle Cruising specialist, has today announced its investment in creating a first-class Guest ship destination in New York.

NCL, in conjunction with Carnival Cruises, has signed a letter of intent to pay $200m in port fees up to 2017. The city is committing to an ambitious redevelopment to modernise and renovate its New York Cruise Terminal on Manhattan’s West Side, and to create a new berth on the Brooklyn waterfront to meet the growing demand of the cruise industry. In return, NCL will gain preferential berths of specific piers and incentives in the form of fee reductions for volume and revenue guarantees.

The move follows NCL’s announcement of its deployment for 2005-06 about expanding its presence in the company’s key US market and reflects a trend in the booming cruising industry. In particular, NCL have seen Homeland Cruising become increasingly popular with UK cruisers.

Colin Veitch, CEO of NCL, says: ‘‘We are extremely pleased with this new agreement as it enables Norwegian Cruise Line, as pioneers of year round cruising from New York on Norwegian Dawn, to continue to grow its strong presence in the ‘Big Apple.’ New York City will be NCL’s number one home port in the mainland United States, where we will offer cruises to Florida, the Bahamas, the Caribbean, Canada, New England and Bermuda – and the city’s only year round ship.’’

Stephen Park, UK General Manager at NCL, says: " We are delighted to be pioneering this investment in New York cruising. NCL’s business strategy is based on market demand, the growth of US travel from the UK and favourable exchange rates which are encouraging UK guests to discover America. NCL’s decision to expand its programme from US ports of departure, is an opportunity for us to become market leaders, building on our existing year round presence in New York.’’

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