Fred Olsen Cruise Lines has hailed its inaugural ‘virtual cruising’ programme a success.

According to the cruise line, traffic to its website from its social media accounts is up by more than 250 per cent since the virtual sailings began following the suspension of sailings.

The number of visits from Facebook to Fred Olsen’s consumer website has increased by 252 per cent on the same period last year, with more than 31,800 unique views to ‘The Bridge’, the dedicated section of the website hosting virtual cruising content, while bookings for 2021 are up by 11 per cent year on year.

The first virtual cruise to Norway took place on 9 April, and destinations since then have included the Canary Islands, Macaronesia, Iceland and Greenland, the UK and the Mediterranean.

Head of digital at Fred Olsen Cruise Lines, Ben Williams, said: “When we started our virtual cruising programme, it was to engage with our guests and to give them the opportunity to enjoy all the joys of cruising at a time when we are unable to travel.

“It has been so rewarding to see guests sharing their memories from the various ports we have called into and telling us their tales from aboard our ships.

What it has also done is demonstrate that there is still an appetite for cruise and that so many, like us, can’t wait to get cruising again as soon as the world is ready.”

Each week, the cruise line’s virtual cruise takes in a different destination via a series of videos, images, blog posts, while also celebrating the onboard experience by offering onboard lectures, videos from entertainment acts, tutorials and live quizzes.

Fred Olsen Cruise Lines’ virtual programme continues next week with a focus on the Baltic, with a full itinerary to be posted across its social media channels at the start of the week.

Visit fredolsencruises.com/the-bridge for more information.