The Prince Rupert Port Authority has tabulated their numbers from the 2008 cruise season, giving a few glimpses into the state of the now five year old industry on the North Coast.
The season which came to an end in September, proved to be a successful one for shoreline excursion operators by volume, as they had a 21 per cent increase in the number of visitors using their services in 2008. The shoreline excursion trips provided 2.4 million dollars in income for the operators in the city, as six thousand more tourists took advantage of their tours from last years numbers.
The overall impact of the cruise industry in 2008 is expected to be around 10 million dollars, though it will remain to be seen if that is a number that can be matched in 2009.
In August Royal Caribbean Cruise Line’s announced that they were pulling their vessel Rhapsody of the Seas from its port calls in Prince Rupert, changing their destination point to Victoria in 2009.
There has been no replacement vessel named to take over their regular weekly spot, a situation that will leave a hole in the cruise scene in Prince Rupert for next year.
The Daily news outlined the details of the Port of Prince Rupert’s number crunching in Thursday’s paper.
Cruise ship numbers announced
Port Authority reflects on the successes of the 2008 season
By George T. Baker
The Daily News
Thursday, October 9, 2008
The season which came to an end in September, proved to be a successful one for shoreline excursion operators by volume, as they had a 21 per cent increase in the number of visitors using their services in 2008. The shoreline excursion trips provided 2.4 million dollars in income for the operators in the city, as six thousand more tourists took advantage of their tours from last years numbers.
The overall impact of the cruise industry in 2008 is expected to be around 10 million dollars, though it will remain to be seen if that is a number that can be matched in 2009.
In August Royal Caribbean Cruise Line’s announced that they were pulling their vessel Rhapsody of the Seas from its port calls in Prince Rupert, changing their destination point to Victoria in 2009.
There has been no replacement vessel named to take over their regular weekly spot, a situation that will leave a hole in the cruise scene in Prince Rupert for next year.
The Daily news outlined the details of the Port of Prince Rupert’s number crunching in Thursday’s paper.
Cruise ship numbers announced
Port Authority reflects on the successes of the 2008 season
By George T. Baker
The Daily News
Thursday, October 9, 2008
Pages one and three
.
The Prince Rupert Port Authority has announced the year-end totals for their cruise ship season.
Even with the dampening of cruise liner enthusiasm since the August announcement that Royal Caribbean Line’s Rhapsody of the Sea will not be coming back next year, the numbers point to positive growth for the overall in-town cruise line industry.
According to figures released by the port, there was a 21 per cent increase in tourist traffic for the shoreline excursion tours. The number jumped to just under 31,000 tour customers, up from the more than 25,000 customers the year before.
“Shoreline excursion tour operators have stepped up to the plate. They have invested the time, money and energy to offer top-notch services and that certainly is showing in the numbers of cruise passengers that are using for the tours,” said PPRA manager of corporate communications Barry Bartlett.
Overall the results of increased tours customers generated $2.4 million for the city operators. The estimated value of the 2008 cruise line industry to the city is expected to be worth $10 million.
The announcement in August that RCCL will not be running its cruise ship through Prince Rupert in 2009 has put a damper on the bright spirits for the season but Bartlett said the PPRA is working hard to get the industry to return to Rupert in the coming years.
“We meet and engage with the decision makers in the other cruise lines.”
“Fall is a busy time of year when you look at the cruise industry. It is when they are making their final decisions for where they are going to go next year and there is lots of travel planning and conferences where planners are looking at where they should be,” said Bartlett.
This is the fifth year since the opening of the cruise liner terminal.
Bartlett said they are getting positive feedback from the captains and crews of the ships that call-in.
He said they have been told that the city has been commended for the ease that ships can birth in the harbour and how the logistics work for the shoreline excursion and the collection for the ships on their cut from the tours, which Bartlett said they did all the collecting for therm.
The Prince Rupert Port Authority has announced the year-end totals for their cruise ship season.
Even with the dampening of cruise liner enthusiasm since the August announcement that Royal Caribbean Line’s Rhapsody of the Sea will not be coming back next year, the numbers point to positive growth for the overall in-town cruise line industry.
According to figures released by the port, there was a 21 per cent increase in tourist traffic for the shoreline excursion tours. The number jumped to just under 31,000 tour customers, up from the more than 25,000 customers the year before.
“Shoreline excursion tour operators have stepped up to the plate. They have invested the time, money and energy to offer top-notch services and that certainly is showing in the numbers of cruise passengers that are using for the tours,” said PPRA manager of corporate communications Barry Bartlett.
Overall the results of increased tours customers generated $2.4 million for the city operators. The estimated value of the 2008 cruise line industry to the city is expected to be worth $10 million.
The announcement in August that RCCL will not be running its cruise ship through Prince Rupert in 2009 has put a damper on the bright spirits for the season but Bartlett said the PPRA is working hard to get the industry to return to Rupert in the coming years.
“We meet and engage with the decision makers in the other cruise lines.”
“Fall is a busy time of year when you look at the cruise industry. It is when they are making their final decisions for where they are going to go next year and there is lots of travel planning and conferences where planners are looking at where they should be,” said Bartlett.
This is the fifth year since the opening of the cruise liner terminal.
Bartlett said they are getting positive feedback from the captains and crews of the ships that call-in.
He said they have been told that the city has been commended for the ease that ships can birth in the harbour and how the logistics work for the shoreline excursion and the collection for the ships on their cut from the tours, which Bartlett said they did all the collecting for therm.
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