Ports & destinations

British tourism economy benefits as cruise passengers spend more

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Ports & Destinations Ports & Destinations; Published: 22 September 2014 22 September 2014

Britain's tourism economy continues to benefit as cruise passengers spend more either at the beginning of their cruise from the UK or during day trips to British ports. The value of cruising was further enhanced by the 10 per cent growth in passenger embarkations to 1.04m and the 20 per cent year-on-year increase in day calls which reached 866,000 in 2013.

The 2013 cruise year saw each passenger visit at a British port (combining the embarkation and day call numbers and excluding air fares) generate an average spend of €100 per passenger visit, an increase of 10% over 2012. With the average cruise ship now carrying 2000 passengers, the vessels are bringing in some €200,000 per visit. This significant passenger spend boosts local and regional tourism revenues and forms an integral part of the overall cruise line spend in the UK which accounted for over €3 billion in 2013. The estimated €3.01 billion includes passenger and crew expenditure, cruise line purchases, ship repair and employee remuneration.

'Cruise tourism is a valuable source of income to ports and destinations across Britain and is increasingly being factored into local and regional tourism,' says Daren Taylor, Chair CruiseBritain. 'The vessels that can be accommodated range from small ships carrying a handful of passengers through to boutique ships and then up to the largest ships deployed in Europe. This wide range gives an opportunity for all ports, including those without major facilities and infrastructure, to benefit from the growing popularity of cruising to and around Britain. The figures for day calls at British ports are increasing steadily and have nearly quadrupled over the last 10 years.'

'When cruise line direct expenditure on food and beverage, fuel and other non-durable goods, jobs, business services and travel agent commissions, plus indirect benefits from suppliers and employee compensation, are added into the equation, it is clear that cruise business is big business for the UK economy,' added Taylor.

British city of Hull plans cruise terminal

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: Ports & Destinations Ports & Destinations; Published: 12 September 2014 12 September 2014

The city of Hull on Britain's east coast is planning a dedicated cruise terminal after it had started to receive interest from the industry a few years ago.

The city council says on its website that the terminal is part of its development plan for the next few years. Located on the north side of the River Humber, Hull is a port city and P&O Ferries operate four passenger carrying vessels from there on overnight crossings to the Continent. Immingham on the south side of the river is a major roro freight facility.

Cruise & Maritime Voyages, the British destinational cruise shipping company, has operated turn around calls from Hull in recent years. At the moment, there is no port with dedicated cruise facilities on Britain's east coast between Harwich in the south and Newcastle in the north east.

Works underway at BVI Cruise Pier

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Ports & Destinations Ports & Destinations; Published: 02 September 2014 02 September 2014

Works for the BVI Cruise Pier Expansion Project are currently underway, as was highlighted during yesterday’s media tour with Minister for Communications and Works Honourable Mark Vanterpool and Managing Director of the BVI Ports Authority Mr. Claude O. Skelton Cline.

Members of the press along with a few Government officials were taken on a ground tour of the project that highlighted both the marine and landside works currently happening at the Cruise Pier.

On the marine side, IDL Projects and Meridian Construction Joint Venture Company Ltd is responsible for the strengthening, lengthening and widening of the current pier. Honourable Vanterpool told the press that piling for the marine works may begin as early as this week.

The company will also dredge in and around the pier facility and turning basin to allow safer maneuvering of ships; remove existing rip rap or rock face that currently protects the land and replace same with a bulkhead for better protection of landside; and establish a 20-foot boardwalk along the southern coastline which will eventually handle pedestrian traffic.

The rip rap is already being used to create a revetment, or foundation, for dredged materials to be deposited. This is being done to create one-and-a-half to two acres of land behind the Central Administration Building.

During the tour, piles were being driven on the landside by Ports and Marina Services Ltd, which is tasked with site enabling and substructure works that specifically entails demolition, piling and placement of concrete slabs.

Scope of works for the Cruise Pier Expansion Project involves the lengthening and widening of the cruise pier to over 1,300 ft. and 60 ft. The pier is also being strengthened to accommodate ships with over 170,000 gross registered tons. Along with the pier works, the project also includes a landside development: ‘Tortola Pier Park’, which will feature commercial, retail, entertainment and green spaces, open to the public.

The Project, being done by the Government of the Virgin Islands and the BVI Ports Authority, is designed to create a unique and modern cruise pier facility that delivers a memorable, world-class and environmentally compatible sustainable development.

Heraklion Port Authority continues to improve infrastructure, services

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Ports & Destinations Ports & Destinations; Published: 03 September 2014 03 September 2014

Heraklion Port is progressing successfully with an ongoing program focused on streamlining its turnaround and transit call services and is already emerging as one of the most competitive cruise ports of the East Mediterranean. Situated right in the heart of this region, Heraklion is an ideal turnaround location with access to a multitude of popular port destinations within short distances. With airlift capacity also being a crucial consideration regarding turnaround ports, note that between January and July of 2014 Heraklion’s international Nikos Kazantzakis Airport handled over 1.4 million passengers from a plethora of European gateways and have reached close to full capacity levels of scheduled and charter flights.

Along with contemporary safety, security and operational efficiency standards, the port now offers a number of features aimed at comfort, destination awareness, entertainment and overall passenger satisfaction. Among the most recent additions is a mobile ISPS unit that provides greater embarkation/disembarkation flexibility and an electric vehicle to facilitate passengers with special needs.

As Ioannis Bras, President and Managing Director of Heraklion Port Authority stated, "We have already shown our commitment to upgrading both the infrastructure and services of our port and we are now going ahead with the installation of a special tent terminal structure on Pier IV, (289 meters length & 14.2 m depth). This will be a permanent fixture, fully air-conditioned and laid out to provide all necessary embarkation/disembarkation services smoothly and efficiently. I would also like to remind cruise operators that the Port of Heraklion is open to all last minute requests for cruise calls throughout the year. Trust us to find a solution that will be appreciated by both passengers and crew."

Thanks to its clement weather, extensive tourism infrastructure, unique cultural interests and historic attractions, Heraklion is a lively year round cruise destination and one of the few East Mediterranean tourist ports with great winter cruising potential.

High New Zealand costs challenging cruise lines

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Ports & Destinations Ports & Destinations; Published: 19 August 2014 19 August 2014

New Zealand’s fuel and port costs are among the highest in the world, according to international cruise line representatives.

Even though cruise passengers regularly rate their experience of New Zealand highly, the high costs of operating here are a challenge for cruise lines, delegates at Cruise New Zealand’s recent annual conference in Napier heard.

“More than ever, established products and ports are competing globally. Auckland is competing with Port Canaveral and Barcelona. Napier is competing with Cozumel, Palma and Ushuaia,” Royal Caribbean Cruises Associate Vice President – Deployment & Itinerary Planning Christopher Allen said.

Combined with the trend of increasingly bigger ships, there are significant implications for New Zealand as a cruise destination.

New Zealand must be prepared to host the next generation of cruise ships in order to remain competitive, Mr Allen said.

However, Royal Caribbean Cruises was expecting a record number of New Zealand port visits and passenger numbers for the 2015-16 cruise season, up 600% from the 2010-11 season.

Crystal Cruises Vice President – Land Programs, John Stoll agreed but highlighted a range of opportunities for New Zealand’s tourism industry to benefit from the growing cruise market.

“Our customers are your customers and when the cruise lines deliver guests to New Zealand ports, it is imperative that we all focus on maximising each opportunity,” Mr Stoll said, noting that Crystal guests are always interested in exclusive and intimate experiences that they can’t find anywhere else.

Innovative activities and products gave both ships and passengers reason to return.

Crystal Cruises offers its customers the option of tours before and after their cruise, which provides opportunities for tourism operators beyond the ports of call. The company also regularly schedules special shore side events at special venues during World Cruises. Since 2003, Crystal has featured four World Cruise events in New Zealand – in Matamata, Rotorua, Wellington and Napier. An exclusive once-in-a-lifetime event at the Hobbiton Movie Site in Matamata will be featured during Crystal’s 2015 World Cruise overnight stay in Tauranga to celebrate the line’s 25th Silver Anniversary.

Both the cruise line’s reputation and the appeal of the destination played a part in a passenger’s decision to take a cruise so all parties needed to work together to maximise the opportunities of this growing sector, Mr Stoll said.

– Miami-based cruise line Royal Caribbean Cruises currently operates two brands in New Zealand. In the 2013-2014 cruise season, Royal Caribbean International’s two ships conducted 13 voyages and 60 port calls in New Zealand, while Celebrity Cruises' Celebrity Solstice conducted 12 voyages and made 71 port calls. As a group, Royal Caribbean Cruises is second largest in the world, behind Carnival Group.
– Owned by NYK Line and based in Los Angeles, Crystal Cruises caters to the luxury end of the market. In the 2013-2014 cruise season, Crystal Symphony conducted an exchange voyage (where the cruise begins or ends in New Zealand) and visited 8 ports including an overnight stay in Auckland.