Tauranga City's cruise ship appeal continues to rise with bold plans to attract a larger number of bigger liners following another 'great” season.
The 2013/1014 cruise ship season ends today with a final visit from the Dawn Princess – one of 80 cruise ships to visit the city since last October.
The Dawn Princess in port this morning. Photo: Tracy Hardy. Click image above to watch Tourism BOP's Rhys Arrowsmith talk about the 2013/14 cruise ship season.
The ship berthed at the Port of Tauranga at 7.15am and is scheduled to leave at 7pm.
The final ship marks what Tourism BOP general manager Rhys Arrowsmith estimates was a busy season with 240,000 visiting passengers and crew expected to inject $45million and $50million into the region.
This season's 80 ships is slightly down on last season's 84, but Rhys says larger cruiseliners with more passengers are docking here, demonstrating the city's ability to cement itself among the top three ports of call in Australasia.
And there is a noticeable shift back towards the Tauranga CBD, with a growing number of return visitors opting to spend time and money in the Western Bay, rather than Rotorua.
'Cruise ship passengers are prolific so they will come back again and again, and they will upgrade ships, it's generally what they do,” says Rhys.
'And because perhaps they have done the Rotorua trips before in the past, they are spending more time in the Bay; so we are topping over 50 per cent of the passenger staying here now.
'We have got our own natural setting, so we have got a big increase in local tours coming onboard with local operators. But also just the fact that we have two great CBD areas that people like going to and shop at.”
With strong assets and facilities at the port's doorstep, including the i-Port, Rhys says Tauranga is continuing to set the bar for cruise ship standards for NZ ports.
'We predict over the next few years with the opening of the Panama Canal we will get a lot more ships; bigger ships coming through this region.
'We have got lots of growing to do. The retailers themselves have been really stepping up, but we can do much, much more.”
What do you think Tauranga could do to attract more cruise liners? Comment by logging in here.
6 comments
Untrue
Posted on 13-05-2014 11:18 | By Accountable
There has not been a noticeable shift back to the CBD and in fact the CBD has been receiving less passengers than in previous years. One 37 seat bus per hour is only a token gesture to the CBD from Council to make up for the refusal to allow a free cruise ship passenger service to run because there was no money in it for Tourism Bay of Plenty who have had an increase in their finances because of their monopoly on the port. If Tourism Bay of Plenty want to write a press release they should ensure they tell the truth.
Things to Do
Posted on 13-05-2014 12:45 | By Jumack
A lot of elderly people come in on Cruise Ships, surely there would be a way of making the Mount Summit more accessible, that would be a real draw card for this area, A Gondola perhaps!!!!
Mr Ken
Posted on 13-05-2014 14:25 | By pamken
move the info station back to where it was,get maori to build a maori village with all the settlement $$$s they have, so a lot of people wont go off to Rotorua,make the top of the mount more accessible.
No Gondola Needed
Posted on 13-05-2014 15:24 | By Mohio
Having been up at Rotorua's Skyline while cruise passengers where there let me tell you first hand that is the last place they wanted to be! Yes they where elderly folk, wanting firm ground not in and out of gondolas and looking at more water. Start by asking our own older folk in the bay what they would want, lets face it if they can't access our facilities these passengers would be in the same predicament.
False Hopes
Posted on 13-05-2014 17:30 | By sangrae
How come Mr Arrowsmith is continueing to make statements when he knows them to be not true.Untrues comments seem to be closer to the mark,he also made acomment that Tauranga is setting the bar if this is so how come The Dominion Post reported this week that the ports of Auckland and Wellington were leading the way in cruiseship spending ect ect.Some positive reporting from all parties would be a start in the right direction.
Mounties make hay while others moan
Posted on 14-05-2014 14:48 | By Annalist
By the looks of the comments the Mount businesses are doing well out of the cruise ships. But those moaning (maybe from Tauranga CBD) should remember that the main reason the ships berth here is to go to Rotorua and its a lot closer than busing from Auckland. So it's a bonus that a lot either stay here or still have time here. Not so keen on so-called free transport to the city. In other countries the "free" transport often takes people to tourist traps to spend their money.
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