The drop in cruise ship passengers to Vancouver this year led to one of the steepest declines in economic benefit of the cruise ship industry in B.C.
According to Cruise BC, the economic impact of the cruise ship industry in B.C. fell 26.3% to $1.2 billion from $1.6 billion in 2009. That’s the lowest level of economic impact since 2003.
For the season, the total number of passengers fell to 1 million from 1.4 million last year, with the total number of sailings dropping to 437 from 522.
The recession as well as Alaska’s head-tax on cruise passengers were some of the key contributors to the decline. (See “Alaska holds key to keeping Vancouver’s beleaguered cruise ship industry afloat” – Business in Vancouver, issue 1069, April 20-26.)
Passenger volumes in Vancouver fell the most, down to 575,000 from 898,473 last year, due to the drop in the number of ships to 177 from 256 in 2009.
Despite the challenging season, the industry looks forward to a much stronger industry next year. This spring, Alaska approved a drop in its cruise ship head tax from US$46 to US$34.50, with further offsets for ships stopping in Juneau or Ketchikan.
In addition to enhanced customer programs and services, the industry will see new cruise lines coming to B.C., including Disney Cruise Lines, Oceania Cruises and the return of Crystal Cruises’ Crystal Symphony, which will make nine port calls to Vancouver in 2011.