MARKETS & DESTINATIONS
some have cancelled their Asia season outright, others are cancelling on a rolling basis and taking a more cautious approach, monitoring the spread and cancelling as and when necessary.’
According to Materi, a cancellation in one port means a re-booking in another, ‘which takes a lot of time and effort in a short period of time.’
East Asia Kenneth Wong, gm MICE & cruise and regional director Europe at Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) reported cancellation of 49 calls so far this year, where both cruise terminals are temporarily closed.
Wong is optimistic about 2021, however, with plans to ‘work closely with cruise business partners to rebuild consumer confidence and regenerate market demand.’
Last year, the territory’s total passenger throughput was 903,000, up 3.2% from 2018 due to new rail-cruise products and tours created by the opening of the high speed rail link to mainland China and the bridge and tunnel system connecting Hong Kong and Macau. Wong credited both for driving non-transit passenger growth and a rise in mainland passengers by 13.3% Y-o-Y.
The territory received 218 calls from 52 ships in 2019, a slight increase from the previous year’s 210 calls from 44 ships.
Jeff Bent, md World Wide Cruise Terminals, which operates Hong Kong’s Kai Tak Cruise Terminal (KTCT) anticipates a drop in ship calls of up to a third or more this year, adding ‘spring is our busiest season.’
Bent said his main challenge for 1H 2020 is to convince Hong Kong authorities to reopen the local cruise terminals and coordinate with nearby jurisdictions to establish metrics for when calls can resume.
In Yokohama, the quarantine of Princess Cruises’ Diamond Princess was lifted February 19, but at the time of writing almost 500 crew members remained on board.
Diamond Princess is the port’s most popular foreign ship, with more than 30 yearly turnarounds, said Nakano Hiroya, director general of Yokohama’s Port and Harbor Bureau.
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Other 1Q cancellations include Piano Land, Westerdam, Queen Elizabeth II, Spectrum of the Seas and Asuka II.
Last year Yokohama received 188 port calls, a record high, with passenger numbers increasing 20% over the previous year’s 420,000.
After last year’s opening of Daikoku and Shiko pier cruise terminals for mega and luxury ships, respectively, Yokohama can accommodate seven ships concurrently. The port plans to extend Daikoku’s berth length to 1,030mtr by 2022.
Materi says South Korea’s blanket ban on receiving cruise ships has prompted Destination Asia to make appeals in Japan for the temporary suspension of cabotage regulations so cruises can go ahead.
In Taiwan, where ports are closed to cruise traffic, the Taiwan International Ports Corporation (TIPC) estimates cancellation of 112 calls this year.
In 2019, TIPC welcomed 667 calls and 1.05m passengers, up 5% and 4% respectively compared to 2018. Of the 32 cruises that called at TIPC ports, 16 were maiden voyages to Taiwan.
Construction is still underway in Keelung,
where terminal expansion and a new passenger service building will be completed by Q2 2020 and in 2021, respectively. In Kaohsiung, the new cruise terminal will be operational in 2021.
TIPC anticipates flattening growth in the coming years so plans to reduce dockage fees and related costs in the near future, provide incentives for foreign cruise itineraries and focus on transit calls and fly-cruise to develop cruise business.
Southeast Asia
‘It is still too early to determine the full impact [of COVID-19], but we are confident that our cruise sector is resilient and will emerge even stronger,’ said Annie Chang, director, Cruise, Singapore Tourism Board (STB), pointing to a 15.6% compound annual growth rate of cruise throughput from 2015 to 2019 and 3.5% growth in foreign cruise throughput despite supply constraints, ‘with strong in-market demand from mid and long haul markets.’
ASIA
Hong Kong – up to a third of calls dropped
Taiwan ports closed to cruise
seatrade-cruise.com
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