A new British Columbia cruise industry association is telling cruise lines that B.C.’s port cities should be considered as destinations for their passengers rather than just a stopover on the way to Alaska.

“We’re marketing British Columbia as a destination in its own right,” says Jane McIvor, manager of Cruise BC. “So rather than a ship starting in Seattle, stopping for a couple of hours in Victoria, Prince Rupert or Campbell River and then going up to Alaska, we’re saying, ‘Hey, we’ve got just as much here to offer.’ ” The cruise industry is worth $500 million annually to B.C. and McIvor says a recent study identified the potential for increasing that business significantly. The report was commissioned by a consortium of B.C.’s ports as well as Western Economic Diversification Canada and B.C.’s Ministry of Small Business and Economic Development, which were instrumental in forming Cruise BC.

McIvor says the threat of Seattle taking a larger portion of the cruise business is just one of the reasons behind the formation of Cruise BC., officially launched last month at the industry’s major trade fair, the Seatrade Shipping Convention in Miami. “It’s our major competition – there’s no doubt about it,” says McIvor.

But, she adds, “I believe there is enough business that we are both going to hit our capacity.”

Photo courtesy Cruise B.C.
British Columbia ports and businesses are co-operating in an effort to lure more than stopover traffic from cruise lines.

Cruise lines with ships docking at Vancouver piers during the 2004 season, which runs April to October, include Carnival, Celebrity Cruises, Cruise West, Crystal Cruises, Holland America, Japan Cruise Lines, Norwegian Cruise Lines, Princess Cruises, Radisson Seven Seas and Royal Caribbean.

McIvor says most cruise line passengers are American, and since the double-whammy of 9/11 and SARS, many don’t want to fly internationally – but they will fly to Seattle.

“We’re 100 per cent behind the Cruise BC initiative,” says Bill Mills, president and CEO of the Nanaimo Port Authority.

Mills was a part of the Cruise BC mission to SeaTrade, where he met with several cruise lines to talk about modifications being made at the Nanaimo port. Planned modifications to the dock, to be completed for the start of the 2006 cruise season, will accommodate cruise ships up to 960 feet long.

In the meantime, Mills says they are encouraging cruise ships to drop anchor there, as the ResidenSea condominium cruise ship The World did for two days last year. A million-dollar improvement to docking currently being used by Harbour Link will accommodate tenders coming off the vessels.

“All in all we were extremely pleased with our reception,” says Mills. “Our early indications since we got back from SeaTrade is one of the lines is looking at possibly giving us a call next year by doing the anchorage process.”

McIvor says the number of cruise passengers passing through Vancouver dropped last year and is expected to dip again this year about six per cent, but forecasts call for the industry to start to grow again in 2005. In contrast, she notes, Seattle is currently growing at about 45 per cent as it builds up its cruise-handling capacity. “They are recognizing the opportunities that cruise lines offer to a city.”

However, McIvor also points out that B.C. faces competition from all North American ports – California, Mexico, the East Coast – as well as the Caribbean, the Mediterranean and Russian ports. But cost comparisons show it makes sense to operate in British Columbia, and that’s the message Cruise BC is giving the cruise lines, she says.

The association’s short-term goal is to increase the number of stops cruise lines make in British Columbia. Besides the six ports that can already accept large cruise ships – Vancouver, Victoria, Campbell River, Nanaimo, Prince Rupert and Port Alberni – another six are looking at increasing their infrastructure. They include Alert Bay, Gold River, Port Hardy, Stewart, Tahsis and Squamish, which is considering the opportunities associated with the 2010 Winter Olympics.

“There is the potential to get some cruise lines here in February. Our waters are certainly navigable at that time,” says McIvor.

Industry workshops have been held over the past 18 months for tourism operators, event marketers and suppliers to ensure that services are available for cruise line passengers. “They can’t get to a port and not have anything to do,” says McIvor, who adds the association is educating travel agents to encourage passengers to spend a few extra days before or after their cruise in B.C.’s port cities.

One of Cruise BC’s mandates is to bring all the partners in the industry together, including destination marketing organizations and suppliers such as the Vancouver shipyards, which already do a lot of business with the cruise industry, plus associations such as Tourism Vancouver, Tourism Victoria and Tourism B.C. “I’ve never seen so much co-operation amongst competitors,” says McIvor.

“Everybody recognizes that we’re here for the long term, we have to co-operate, we have to show the cruise lines this co-operation and that’s the only way to get the business.”

The Port of Prince Rupert will welcome its first large cruise ship, the Norwegian Spirit, on May 20. A new terminal under construction is almost completed. Thirty-five cruise ships and approximately 65,000 passengers will dock at the port this year.

Jan Mansfield Business Edge

A new British Columbia cruise industry association is telling cruise lines that B.C.’s port cities should be considered as destinations for their passengers rather than just a stopover on the way to Alaska.

“We’re marketing British Columbia as a destination in its own right,” says Jane McIvor, manager of Cruise BC. “So rather than a ship starting in Seattle, stopping for a couple of hours in Victoria, Prince Rupert or Campbell River and then going up to Alaska, we’re saying, ‘Hey, we’ve got just as much here to offer.’ ” The cruise industry is worth $500 million annually to B.C. and McIvor says a recent study identified the potential for increasing that business significantly. The report was commissioned by a consortium of B.C.’s ports as well as Western Economic Diversification Canada and B.C.’s Ministry of Small Business and Economic Development, which were instrumental in forming Cruise BC.

McIvor says the threat of Seattle taking a larger portion of the cruise business is just one of the reasons behind the formation of Cruise BC., officially launched last month at the industry’s major trade fair, the Seatrade Shipping Convention in Miami. “It’s our major competition – there’s no doubt about it,” says McIvor.

But, she adds, “I believe there is enough business that we are both going to hit our capacity.”

Cruise lines with ships docking at Vancouver piers during the 2004 season, which runs April to October, include Carnival, Celebrity Cruises, Cruise West, Crystal Cruises, Holland America, Japan Cruise Lines, Norwegian Cruise Lines, Princess Cruises, Radisson Seven Seas and Royal Caribbean.

McIvor says most cruise line passengers are American, and since the double-whammy of 9/11 and SARS, many don’t want to fly internationally – but they will fly to Seattle.

“We’re 100 per cent behind the Cruise BC initiative,” says Bill Mills, president and CEO of the Nanaimo Port Authority.

Mills was a part of the Cruise BC mission to SeaTrade, where he met with several cruise lines to talk about modifications being made at the Nanaimo port. Planned modifications to the dock, to be completed for the start of the 2006 cruise season, will accommodate cruise ships up to 960 feet long.

In the meantime, Mills says they are encouraging cruise ships to drop anchor there, as the ResidenSea condominium cruise ship The World did for two days last year. A million-dollar improvement to docking currently being used by Harbour Link will accommodate tenders coming off the vessels.

“All in all we were extremely pleased with our reception,” says Mills. “Our early indications since we got back from SeaTrade is one of the lines is looking at possibly giving us a call next year by doing the anchorage process.”

McIvor says the number of cruise passengers passing through Vancouver dropped last year and is expected to dip again this year about six per cent, but forecasts call for the industry to start to grow again in 2005. In contrast, she notes, Seattle is currently growing at about 45 per cent as it builds up its cruise-handling capacity. “They are recognizing the opportunities that cruise lines offer to a city.”

However, McIvor also points out that B.C. faces competition from all North American ports – California, Mexico, the East Coast – as well as the Caribbean, the Mediterranean and Russian ports. But cost comparisons show it makes sense to operate in British Columbia, and that’s the message Cruise BC is giving the cruise lines, she says.

The association’s short-term goal is to increase the number of stops cruise lines make in British Columbia. Besides the six ports that can already accept large cruise ships – Vancouver, Victoria, Campbell River, Nanaimo, Prince Rupert and Port Alberni – another six are looking at increasing their infrastructure. They include Alert Bay, Gold River, Port Hardy, Stewart, Tahsis and Squamish, which is considering the opportunities associated with the 2010 Winter Olympics.

“There is the potential to get some cruise lines here in February. Our waters are certainly navigable at that time,” says McIvor.

Industry workshops have been held over the past 18 months for tourism operators, event marketers and suppliers to ensure that services are available for cruise line passengers. “They can’t get to a port and not have anything to do,” says McIvor, who adds the association is educating travel agents to encourage passengers to spend a few extra days before or after their cruise in B.C.’s port cities.

One of Cruise BC’s mandates is to bring all the partners in the industry together, including destination marketing organizations and suppliers such as the Vancouver shipyards, which already do a lot of business with the cruise industry, plus associations such as Tourism Vancouver, Tourism Victoria and Tourism B.C. “I’ve never seen so much co-operation amongst competitors,” says McIvor.

“Everybody recognizes that we’re here for the long term, we have to co-operate, we have to show the cruise lines this co-operation and that’s the only way to get the business.”

The Port of Prince Rupert will welcome its first large cruise ship, the Norwegian Spirit, on May 20. A new terminal under construction is almost completed. Thirty-five cruise ships and approximately 65,000 passengers will dock at the port this year.

“It far exceeds our expectations for our first year,” says Shaun Stevenson, director of business development for the Prince Rupert Port Authority.

The long-term challenge in building B.C.’s cruise market is dealing with the Canadian cabotage law that states a foreign-owned ship must make at least one stop at an international port during its trip, which means a cruise line can’t do a Canadian-only tour.

It’s similar to the U.S. Jones Act that was passed to help protect the shipbuilding industry.

“That’s a challenge that will take years to overcome,” notes McIvor. In the meantime, the focus is to get more cruise passengers to spend more time in B.C.

“It’s going to happen bit by bit as we get our message out to the cruise lines themselves,” says McIvor.

“We’ve done all of our homework and we’re now at that point where we can go to a cruise line and say, ‘Here’s why you should come to British Columbia.’ ” Nanaimo Port Authority’s Mills says a report from the American Association of Port Authorities shows that a cruise ship with 2,000 passengers and 790 crew will drop about $225,000 into a community on a day visit.

“That’s a major economic impact if you can get 20 or 40 cruise ships calling at your port,” Mills says. “Our whole community is kind of pumped about this thing.”