Auckland’s current cruise season has had a good start with 35 cruise calls to date. The port expects a record 257,000 passengers and crew this summer. Alan Lam reports.
New Zealand’s economic hub is proving to be a popular destination for an increasing number of cruise lines, with seven maiden callers since 2013. During the 2014-15 cruise season, the port expects three maiden callers and an entirely new cruise line to visit. There will be five days when the port hosts three cruise ships simultaneously.
Royal Caribbean’s Voyager of the Seas made its first record breaking visit on 13 December 2014 and returned to the city’s Princes Wharf during the first week of 2015bringing in about 3,800 passengers on each call.
Ports of Auckland Limited predicts an average of one to two cruise ship visits per week, each carrying around 2,360 passengers and 731 crew, an increase of 10,000 on the previous season.
The value added benefit to the city’s economy this season is projected to be $1.8 million per cruise ship, supporting nearly 2,700 jobs.
Last season the port hosted 34 cruise ships on 88 visits that brought in about 195,000 passengers and crew.
