Ports & destinations

Record year for cruise at Port of Vancouver

Details

Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä

Category: Ports & Destinations Ports & Destinations

Published: 23 October 2023 23 October 2023

The final cruise ship of the 2023 season, Holland America Line's Koningsdam, will depart from the Canada Place cruise terminal at the Port of Vancouver tomorrow, marking the end of a robust year for the local cruise industry.

The Port of Vancouver is expected to have welcomed an estimated 1.25 million passengers in 2023, a new record and a 54% increase compared to 2022. This includes 15 of Canada Place's 20 busiest days ever for cruise passengers, all occurring in the past six months. There were 332 cruise ship calls between April and October 2023, a new record for the Canada Place cruise terminal and an increase of 9% compared to 307 visits in 2022.

"Cruise returned to Vancouver emphatically this year after several seasons impacted by the global pandemic-with 2023 seeing record passenger numbers, near-record cruise ship visits and the Canada Place terminal getting further international recognition as a world-class cruise facility," said Peter Xotta, vice president of operations and supply chain at the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority, the federal agency mandated to enable Canada's trade through the Port of Vancouver.

Cruise ship occupancy rates, which are a measure of how full each visiting ship is-averaged 95% for the season and peaked at an average of 96% over the summer, as occupancy rates returned to pre­ pandemic levels. This year was the first full season without any COVID-19 related restrictions, following the gradual easing of federal travel restrictions in 2022.

"The cruise sector's strong performance this year has been a critical catalyst for the local tourism and hospitality industries-supporting countless local jobs and businesses. I'd like to thank our partners, including Ceres Terminals Canada, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, and cruise lines for their hard work in ensuring that this busy season-which included an incredible 15 of Canada Place's 20 busiest days ever-went smoothly," said Xotta.

Holland America Line will join the port authority tomorrow, October 24, to celebrate the Koningsdam's departure and mark the end of a successful cruise season.

"We are honoured to have been part of the Port of Vancouver's biggest cruise season ever, with 25% of guests sailing on five Holland America Line ships," said Beth Bodensteiner, chief commercial officer for Holland America Line. "We see this as further evidence that the cruise industry has rebounded in a remarkable way. We're proud to call Vancouver a homeport and look forward to another great season in 2024."

The Canada Place cruise terminal at the Port of Vancouver was recently recognized as North America's Leading Cruise Port 2023 by World Travel Awards and North America's Best Cruise Terminal in the World Cruise Awards.

"Indications based on preliminary bookings are that the 2024 cruise season will see a similar number of cruise ship visits, demonstrating the underlying strength and popularity of the cruise industry in Vancouver and its unique access to B.C.'s prestigious Inside Passage," said Xotta.

The port authority continues to work alongside the broader port and cruise communities to achieve its goal for the Port of Vancouver to be the world's most sustainable port and commends the cruise industry's focus on shore power and environmental sustainability.

Highlights for 2023 cruise season

– The last cruise ship of the season, the Koningsdam, is scheduled to depart Canada Place on October 24, 2023
– This season's first cruise ship at the Port of Vancouver was the Sapphire Princess
– Overall, the average cruise ship passenger occupancy rate for 2023 was 95%, compared to 69% in 2022. Pre-pandemic occupancy rates typically ranged between 93% and 99%, including 98% in 2019.
– In 2023, nearly 75% of cruise calls were shore power enabled, compared to 70% in 2022 and 50% in 2019. Demand for shore power has steadily increased since 2009, when the Port of Vancouver became the first port in Canada and the third in the world to introduce shore power for cruise. Shore power enables ships to shut down their diesel-powered auxiliary engines and plug into land-based electrical power. At the Port of Vancouver, this has helped reduce port-related greenhouse gas emissions by more than 38,000 tonnes since 2009.
– Six inaugural vessels docked at Canada Place in 2023, including the Norwegian Encore, Brilliance of the Seas, Silver Whisper, Hanseatic Nature, Fridtjof Nansen and Seabourn Venture

Photo: Koningsdam departing Vancouver in 2022. Photo credit: Teijo Niemela

Nassau Cruise Port on track to set a new annual passenger record

Details

Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä

Category: Ports & Destinations Ports & Destinations

Published: 17 October 2023 17 October 2023

Nassau Cruise Port has announced that, after comparing its total passenger numbers year over year, the total number of passengers that visited the port this year (as of September 2023) was over 11,000 passengers higher than the overall passenger count for 2022.

By September 24, 2023, the port team had welcomed 3,224,210 cruise passengers for the year. By comparison, 3,212,603 passengers visited the port between January and December 2022.

Company executives estimate that they will welcome 4.2 million passengers for the year by December 2023, which, if achieved, will mark a new total annual passenger record for the leading cruise port in the region.

"We are thrilled to have reached this milestone and to do so just in time to celebrate our fourth anniversary makes the achievement extraordinarily special," said chief executive officer, Mike Maura Jr. "Our success reflects the resilience and commitment of the cruise industry and is a testament to the dedication and hard work of the entire Nassau Cruise Port team, the Bahamian government, our community, and our industry partners. Together, we have transformed the Bahamian cruise tourism product and brand, quickly turning Nassau into a premier destination for cruisers around the world. The best is yet to come," he concluded.

NCP began operations in October 2019 as part of a consortium comprising Global Ports Holding Plc, the Bahamas Investment Fund (BIF) and the Yes Foundation.

Okinawa welcomes Resort World One

Details

Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä

Category: Ports & Destinations Ports & Destinations

Published: 18 October 2023 18 October 2023

Resorts World Cruises continued its expansion of new itineraries this week with the Resorts World One’s inaugural 5-Night cruise from Hong Kong to Okinawa, which include Naha and Miyakojima. Departing from Hong Kong on 15 October 2023, Resorts World One arrives in Naha and Miyakojima on 17 and 18 October 2023 respectively, offering monthly departures from Hong Kong to Okinawa on selected Sundays. Voted as one of the Top 10 Best Islands in Asia for the Conde Nast Traveller Reader’s Choice Awards 2023, Okinawa is an all-time favourite paradise destination for many travellers. Getting there will be a breeze aboard the Resorts World One with cruise fares starting from HK$ 3,520 per guest based on twin sharing.

To commemorate this milestone and joyous occasion, a special welcome event was held in Naha to celebrate Resorts World One’s first arrival into the capital city of Okinawa. As part of the ceremony, Hiroshi Teruya, Executive Vice President, Naha Port Authority; Yukimasa Adaniya, Managing Director, Agricultural Cooperative Association of Okinawa Prefecture (JA Okinawa); Hiroki Matori, Senior Executive Director, Okinawa Convention & Visitors Bureau (OCVB), together with Michael Goh, President of Resorts World Cruises officiated the ship’s inaugural arrival. In addition, the Okinawa tourism bureau also made special arrangements to welcome disembarking guests in Naha with a dazzling cultural performance.

“We are excited to expand our itineraries with Okinawa as our new destination for our 5-Night cruises aboard the Resorts World One from Hong Kong. Okinawa has so much to offer and we look forward to visiting beyond Naha and Miyakojima in the near future,” said Michael Goh, President of Resorts World Cruises. “As we will be calling monthly to Okinawa, we thank the local authorities for their ongoing support as we continue to work closely together to grow the inbound tourism for Japan and for the overall regional cruise tourism industry,” he added.

Taking a cruise vacation to Okinawa offers a new experience altogether, which promises to be fun, unique and memorable. It’s really one of the best ways to get an overall feel of Okinawa and to visit the different destinations within the Okinawa islands, minus the hassle of taking different modes of transportation, checking-in and out of hotels, packing and unpacking at each destination. Hop on aboard the Resorts World One from Hong Kong, one of the world’s best-connected cities and enjoy a seamless 5-Night Naha – Miyakojima cruise vacation departing from Hong Kong on selected Sundays* every month.

In conjunction with the cruise to Okinawa, Resorts World Cruises further collaborated with Japan Agriculture (JA) Okinawa to bring some of its renowned Wagyu beef for the Resorts World One, as well as for the Genting Dream cruise ship. Between 15 November and 15 December 2023, guests will get the opportunity to participate in the JA Okinawa Wagyu Beef Cooking Demonstrations, as well as savour authentic Okinawan cuisine prepared using fresh farm-to-table Okinawa local products at selected onboard specialty restaurants.

With the city of Naha as the main gateway to Okinawa, guests may explore various hallmark attractions. These include immersing yourself in the bustling festivals, bars and cafes at Kokusai Street, amazing duty-free shopping at T-Galleria Okinawa and also enjoying the water activities at Naminoue Beach, while admiring the shrines. Discover more beautiful spots at your next destination in Miyakojima with the country’s best beaches, filled with exciting water-related activities at Yonaha Maehama beach, Sunayama beach and Painagama Beach. Not to be missed are also the unique designed bridges, traditional architectures and colourful festivals.

Port of Barcelona closes the North Terminal of the World Trade Center

Details

Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä

Category: Ports & Destinations Ports & Destinations

Published: 11 October 2023 11 October 2023

The Port of Barcelona recently bid farewell to the last cruise ship to operate at the Barcelona North wharf, located in the World Trade Center, and will transfer all existing cruise activity to the Adossat wharf, an area much further away from the city's residential areas. With the departure of Mystic Cruises' World Navigator, the Port has stopped its operations at Barcelona North, moving around 340 annual cruise ship and ferry calls to the Adossat wharf. Baleària services with the Balearic Islands were already transferred to the Adossat wharf last April.

By closing the Barcelona North wharf to cruise ship and ferry operations, the Port of Barcelona has taken a further step towards fulfilling the commitments it made in 2018 to the City Council to move cruise activity away from urban areas, concentrating them on the Adossat wharf and making them more sustainable.

At the farewell ceremony for the last cruise ship that docked at the Barcelona Nord wharf, Lluís Salvadó, the president of the Port of Barcelona, remarked that “today is a historic day because no cruise ships or ferries will be seen at this wharf again, as the Port of Barcelona will be opening this area to the city and making it available to all of our residents next autumn, once the 37th America's Cup ends.”

Lluís Salvadó recalled that “the closure of the Barcelona Nord wharf for cruise operations is a new step in complying with the agreement signed in 2018 with Barcelona City Council to eliminate the negative externalities that this activity can produce for residents. And it is clear proof that the Port of Barcelona respects its commitments.”

However, this is not the first step that the Port of Barcelona has taken in this regard. Back in 2018, when the agreement with the City Council was signed, the Port closed the cruise terminal located in the Maremagnum, reducing the number of operative terminals from eight to seven. That same year, the Port stopped accepting cruise operations outside the terminals, limiting the number of calls to one ship per terminal.

During this time, the Port of Barcelona has continued to encourage the arrival of the most modern cruise ships of the global fleet – more sustainable vessels which in many cases use transitional fuels such as LNG, significantly reducing the emissions of this traffic segment. Furthermore, works have been ongoing on the Adossat wharf to concentrate all cruise operations in this part of the port precinct from the end of 2026, the year in which the current Barcelona South wharf terminal will be closed.

Transferring all cruise operations to this area of the port, further away from urban areas, involves investments of over EUR 270 million, of which 152 million correspond to public and 125 million to private investment. On top of these investments are those already begun by the Port of Barcelona to electrify the Adossat wharf, adding a further EUR 80 million. Electrifying this wharf means that ships will no longer produce emissions while berthed at the port.

As well as reducing emissions and immission from ships, transferring this traffic from the World Trade Center area to the Adossat wharf will allow the Barcelona North wharf to be opened to the public, freeing up 630 metres of quay line and providing the city with more than 13,600 square metres of new public spaces.