MANILA, Philippines — For the first time ever, families in Manila no longer have to fly to Hong Kong or Singapore to hop on a cruise. “Star Cruises was the first major cruise line to recruit Filipinos 23 years ago for our cruise ships, and now, we are pleased to be the first international cruise line to welcome Filipinos on board Superstar Virgo as our guests from our home port in Manila,” Lim adds in a statement. As home port, Manila will not only be the start and end of Superstar Virgo’s Manila-Laoag-Kaohsiung-Hong Kong route. So far, Star Cruises is the only company that has made Manila a home port as other cruises only have port calls in Manila, said Andrea Manzano, the company’s assistant vice president for sales. Kaohsiung, Taiwan Star Cruises/ReleasedNormally, Filipinos need a visa to go to Taiwan, but the cruise has made arrangements to make the trip visa-free for Filipinos, Goh explained.

Source: Philippine Star January 14, 2017 07:59 UTC