Vancouver’s cruise season ends with the Norwegian Encore departing Tuesday morning with about 4,000 passengers following a year of record growth at the Port of Vancouver.
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Vancouver’s cruise terminal was busy Monday as travellers prepared to check in for the season’s final sailing, with the Norwegian Encore scheduled to set sail Tuesday morning with about 4,000 passengers on board. The ship is expected to make several stops before reaching its final destination in Los Angeles.
The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority (VFPA) says the season was record-breaking, with the number of cruise ships disembarking and docking in Vancouver up 20 per cent from the year before. VFPA figures show there were 358 cruise calls and just over 1.4 million cruise passengers passing through the Port of Vancouver this year.
VFPA senior trade development representative Chance McKee said that, on average, each cruise passenger spending time in the city contributes about $1,100 to local hotels, restaurants, shopping and attractions. He added the sector delivers a $1 billion economic impact to the local Vancouver economy every cruise season.
Just steps from the terminal, Snowggle Gifts says it sees that effect firsthand. Store manager Akari Minamihama said she even uses the cruise schedule to guide staffing, adding, “Every time, I check how many cruises are coming and how many passengers are expected,” and that cruises bring customers “from around the world.”
Destination Vancouver and the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority have been promoting the city beyond cruise arrivals, aiming to position it as a destination for visitors. Jarrett Vaughan, an adjunct professor at the UBC Sauder School of Business, said it is important for the tourism industry to grow through support for hotels and convention centres, adding, “It is really critical that Vancouverites recognize how important the cruise industry is to our economy,” and that supporting the sector helps “generate a lot of tax revenue and employment in this province.”
Before the ship departed, two sisters said their time on shore will stay separate from their onboard plans, with one saying, “What happens on the ship stays on the cruise ship,” adding, “You are as old as you behave, so we are just going to let our hair down and have a really good time.”
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