Port of Keelung is preparing to welcome the maiden visit on October 19th (2025) of the luxury liner Silver Moon. Silver Moon is owned and operated by Silversea Cruises, the premier luxury cruise line in the Royal Caribbean Group, the world’s second-largest cruise vacation company. Arrangements have been made to expeditiously process the anticipated 500 European and American passengers on board so they may fully enjoy their time in Taiwan. The visit by Silver Moon follows the earlier maiden arrival this year in March of the Silver Nova, and marks the second visit in just half a year of a luxury Silversea Cruises liner to Keelung. Also, Silver Moon’s visit will mark the 18th maiden cruise ship call on Keelung Port this year. To mark the occasion, Taiwan International Ports Corporation (TIPC) will welcome the Silver Moon into port with a water salute. Also, TIPC will exchange commemorative gifts with ship officers in port, with TIPC Senior Researcher Wei-chien Chang scheduled to board the Silver Moon and make the presentation on the company’s behalf.
Passage on the Silver Moon’s current 15-night luxury cruise, which originated in Tokyo and will end in Singapore, is priced at a formidable NT$300,000/person. Even more heartening than the news that cruise passenger arrivals in Keelung this year are expected to close in on pre-pandemic numbers is news that cruise ship and passenger profiles have also more-or-less recovered to what they were in the years just prior to the pandemic. This year, for example, of the 40 cruise ships that will together make a total of 219 calls at Port of Keelung, 20 (50%) made their maiden visit to the port just this year - a new all-time record. This reflects the strongly bullish attitude of cruise ship companies toward the East Asia market, with most major lines already aggressively assigning additional new ships to the Asian theater. Prior to the pandemic, the ratio of cruise ships visiting Keelung was: contemporary (90.6%), premium (2.7%), luxury (5.7%), and expedition (1.0%). This year, the share of contemporary cruises is expected to decline to 78.08%, while premium, luxury, and expedition are all expected to increase, respectively, to 7.76%, 12.79%, and 1.37%. This trend underscores not only the increasing diversity in cruise ships calling at Keelung but also the growing number of elite / seasoned cruise passengers visiting Taiwan, giving broad-based, positive momentum to the market in support of sustainable, long-term growth.
To continue attracting luxury cruise ships to Keelung, Port of Keelung officials are working closely with Keelung, Taipei, and New Taipei administrations to develop and support unique in-depth local tour activities. Furthermore, TIPC has been inviting cruise company representatives to Taiwan for special, customized local experience programs. Premier industry brands including Coral Expeditions Australia, Windstar Cruises, The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection, and Villa Vie have already joined these programs and continued discussions on expanding cooperation, underscoring the growing visibility and attractiveness of Taiwan within the overall international cruise vacation industry.
Silver Moon Basic Specifications:
Tonnage：40,700 GT
Length：212.8m
Width：26m
Guest Capacity：596
Prior Call：Nagasaki
Next Call：Hong Kong
Provided by：Stevedoring and Warehousing Dept., Port of Keelung, TIPC
Contact Person：Huai-hsuan Liu, Manager
Telephone No.：02-2420-6421
E-mail Address：sharon06 @twport.com.tw
Image 1. Silversea Cruises’ Silver Moon (photo credit: Silversea website)
Image 2. Silversea Cruises’ Silver Nova made its maiden visit to Port of Keelung earlier this year (March 12th, 2025). Photo shows Port of Keelung Harbor Master Shih-hung Chen (right) and Silver Nova Captain Alessandro Zanello (left) exchanging commemorative gifts
