Alan Lam reporting from Hamburg
The drive to grow cruise tourism in the Arabian Gulf has never relented in recent years. Once again, a large contingent of representatives from the region’s ports and tourism authorities are showcasing their facilities, hospitality, and attractions at Seatrade Europe 2019 Cruise & River Cruise Convention in Hamburg.
CruiseBusiness.com Magazine correspondent spoke to Jamal Humaid AL Falasi, Dubai’s Director of Cruise Tourism about the recent development in the region.
He told us that Dubai was continuing to upgrade its world-class cruise facilities. It already has a state-of-the-art cruise facility that is capable of handling six large cruise ships simultaneously. This, it seems, is not quite enough to meet the ambitious requirement forecast. Its current “Dubai Harbour” project on a different location aims to add another terminal to host two more ships, bringing its total capacity to being able to host eight ships at any one time.
This aspirational move is not without a solid foundation. The prognosis for the region’s cruise business is a bright one. In 2018, for instance, Dubai attracted 157 calls, bringing in a total of 725,000 passengers. This year, it expects 199 calls and 850,000 passengers. 2020 will be a landmark year for Dubai’s cruise tourism, as it targets one million passengers for the first time.
In the coming season, the port has attracted two new homeporting clients: Crystal Cruises and the return of Royal Caribbean International.
It does not end there. Apart from the traditional European and American source markets, the Arabian Gulf region is now also looking at the source markets in the East and, at the same time, seeking to prolong its cruise season. “The Chinese and the Indians love coming to Dubai. We also would love to see them coming on cruise ships,” Al Falasi told us.
The recent start-up Jalesh Cruises of India has just had its first summer of operations in the Arabian Gulf. “All of its cruises were sold out. They’ve had a very successful season,” said Al Falasi. The presence of Jalesh during the summer has already turned the Gulf into a year-round cruise destination.
The region is keen to further develop cruise itineraries eastward. “We speak to cruise lines all the time about the business potentials and homeporting opportunities in our region,” continued Al Falasi, “We can, for example, suggest 7- and 14-night itineraries from the Gulf to three Indian ports: Mumbai, Goa, and Cochin.”
The success of Jalesh is a good indication of a strong business case for going down this road. “There is much more we can do,” he went on. “There is now a study being carried out by a company on the feasibility of cruising to Singapore from Dubai.”
Evidently, the cruise business development efforts of Arabian Gulf region are multifaceted: they include the continuing drives to increase capacity, enlarge the source market base, envisaging pioneering itineraries, and lengthening its cruise season. Its success is measured by year-on-year growths in calls and passenger numbers, which is on course to hit the one million mark next year.