The Majestic Princess was the last ship to visit Tauranga this season. Photo / Alex Cairns
The Majestic Princess was the last ship to visit Tauranga this season. Photo / Alex Cairns
A “significant drop” in cruise ship visits to Tauranga is predicted next season.
New Zealand Cruise Association chief executive Jacqui Lloyd attended the Seatrade cruise industry conference in Miami last week and said signs were pointing to fewer port visits next season.
Reasons for the drop in bookings included increased operating costs in New Zealand, higher port fees and regulatory fees from central government, difficulties around hull cleaning regulations, global competition, and concerns about access through the Red Sea, Lloyd said from the United States.
“It’s a big concern for the nation. Preliminary numbers we’re looking at are 150 to 200 port calls reduced for the country, that’s about 54,000 passengers. The risk for some of the cruise lines is just too high.”
Lloyd also cited the incident in November when Border Control denied the Pacific Adventure, en route to the Bay of Plenty, entry to the country as bad weather had prevented the ship’s hull from being cleaned.
Despite that, Lloyd said the top executives she had met with at the cruise conference spoke highly about their time in Tauranga, Rotorua, and the rest of the Bay of Plenty.
“They have a wonderful relationship with the port, they enjoy the great welcomes when they arrive, the tourism operators in the area really look after the people. The passengers rate their experience highly.”
Lloyd said next season’s bookings had not yet been finalised. The current season was the “largest season New Zealand has ever had”, she said, and “perhaps we’re coming back to a balance”.
Oscar Nathan, general manager of Tourism Bay of Plenty and board member of the NZ Cruise Association, said the region had experienced two “busy and lucrative” cruise seasons since the country’s international border had reopened.
Eighty-eight cruise ship visits were currently booked at the Port of Tauranga for the 2024-25 season, Nathan said. This was about 23 per cent lower than the 115 ships that booked to visit this season, although seven did not arrive. Nathan expected the number of bookings would increase closer to the start of next season.
“The New Zealand Cruise Association has noted there’s been a significant drop in the number of port calls that are being estimated for the country’s 2024-25 season which, in turn, has impacted the number of cruise ships that we can expect to welcome into Tauranga Harbour.
On Wednesday, the Majestic Princess spent the day in Tauranga. It was the last cruise ship this season. Photo / Alex Cairns
“Tauranga remains a popular destination for passengers and most are usually highly satisfied with their onshore experiences while they are here. That’s presumably why our region’s share of the cruise ship bookings, compared to other New Zealand ports, is holding steady.”
Nathan said predicting the financial impact of fewer visits was difficult as the most recent data they have available from Stats NZ is from the 2019-20 season. That season, which was cut short by Covid, saw a $74 million contribution to the region’s economy from electronic card spending.
Tourism Bay of Plenty would continue to work closely with the Port of Tauranga, cruise lines, local tourism operators, and the New Zealand Cruise Association to maximise the value and opportunities international visitors brought to the region, Nathan said.
Oscar Nathan, general manager of Tourism Bay of Plenty and board member of the NZ Cruise Association.
“Tourism is a very agile sector – we’re used to dealing with micro and macro influences which can impact visitor trends.”
Cruise ships were not the only source of international tourists to the region, Nathan said, and the organisation was consistently working to promote the Bay of Plenty to a range of international visitor markets.
Waimarino owner and director Blair Anderson said 20 per cent fewer cruise ships meant they would be 20 per cent down, which would have detrimental effects on staff and turnover. But knowing ahead of time allowed him to plan for that.
Anderson said Waimarino dealt with a lot of cruise ship visitors, especially through their glow worm kayaking excursions. It had been hard to keep the business going in the last four years but the “awesome” and “amazing” staff had helped get them through, he said.
Waimarino Adventure Park owner Blair Anderson. Photo / Supplied
Two other business owners spoken to by the Bay of Plenty Times were mostly unconcerned about the financial ramifications of fewer ship visits.
Bill Campbell, owner of Fancy That gift shop, said it would not be the end of the world and while it would impact their finances it wouldn’t hurt them.
Mount Water Bikes owner Gordy Lockhart said cruise ships did not generate significant revenue for the business as passengers tended to be from an older demographic.
“In addition, the age-old problem of cruise ship passengers being immediately bussed out of Tauranga to Rotorua or Hobbiton very much still exists.”
Andrew Wilson, chief executive of RotoruaNZ. Photo / Andrew Warner
Andrew Wilson, chief executive of RotoruaNZ, said the cruise ship industry provided significant value to the Rotorua visitor economy and has had a positive impact for our operators overall.
“We anticipate the economic benefits will continue and we’re working closely with Tourism Bay of Plenty to further understand the full value cruise ship visitors provide to the Bay of Plenty region.”
Sonya Bateson is an assistant news director at the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post with more than a decade of experience reporting in the Bay of Plenty region.
