Port town bracing for further passenger surge after busy 2025

HOLYHEAD has cemented its place as the country's undisputed cruise ship capital, latest figures show.

- By ANDREW FORGRAVE Countryside and Tourism Editor [e-mail]

The Anglesey port handled 55 of the 84 ships that visited Wales in 2025, around two thirds of the total dockings.

The year's grandest visitor was a returning ship, the massive Regal Princess, which twice called at Holyhead. The 330-metre vessel can carry 3,560 passengers and boasts more than 1,400 balconies.

Other leviathans included the Emerald Princess (3,114 passengers) and the Celebrity Eclipse (2,850 passengers), which visited Holyhead three times this year.

Biggest patron was the operator Viking UK, whose smaller ships carry passengers more likely to alight and tour the region.

Wendy Atkin-Smith, the company's managing director, said visiting Holyhead was a highlight of the company's British Isles voyages.