CONFERENCE Clia Conference 2022: Leading cruise industry figures addressed 550 delegates
Marie-Caroline Laurent
Ben Bouldin
Bouldin: Cruise is case study for crisis response
T
he cruise sector is emerging from the pandemic as a “more robust and resilient” industry and its response to the crisis will be a case
study for years to come, according to the chair of Clia UK & Ireland. Ben Bouldin made his comments on board
MSC Virtuosa during the opening day of the trade association’s conference in Southampton. “We’re a more robust, more resilient
industry and we’re perhaps stronger together than we have ever been,” he told delegates. Bouldin, who is also Royal Caribbean
International’s EMEA vice-president, said the industry had proved to itself and “many governments” that it was able to adjust and pivot when needed. “We have introduced new protocols to keep
our guests safe [and] that is something that we have done incredibly well,” he said, adding that the industry had “come back stronger than ever”. “We know how tough it has been. It’s also
about looking forward. We can take so many learnings from what we’ve been through.” Bouldin highlighted comments by New
Zealand tourism minister Stuart Nash, who said people will read about the cruise sector’s pandemic response “for many years to come”.
12 26 MAY 2022 It’s about looking forward.
We can take so many learnings from what we’ve been through
International cruise ships will be allowed
to return to New Zealand for the first time in two years from July 31, with Princess Cruises’ Majestic Princess scheduled to be the first vessel to return on October 16. Bouldin said: “Just recently, New Zealand’s
tourism minister, Stuart Nash, announced that cruise ships would be back in New Zealand from August. “He said, ‘I think the case study around how
the cruise industry has managed the pandemic is one of those that we will read about in academic literature for many years to come’.” Speaking earlier this month, Nash said:
“What they [the cruise industry] tried to do and what I think they’ve done successfully is confront this [pandemic] head-on and as a consequence it is one of the [types of holiday] that is incredibly safe. “I think the world has a greater degree of
respect for how safe it is to travel on a cruise ship than it has done in the past.”
Clia targets shoreside power in all ‘key’ ports by 2030
Clia Europe has “ambitious” plans to equip every “key” port on the Continent with shoreside power by 2030. Currently, just 7% of cruise ship berths at
the main European ports have shoreside power facilities, the trade association’s director general, Marie-Caroline Laurent, said. Speaking in a panel discussion, she admitted there was “work to do” but pointed out the “benefits” for communities in the vicinity of cruise ports and for cruise passengers. “It’s obviously a complex task to make sure that
we work with all our destinations,” said Laurent. “The target for Europe is to have all key ports
equipped with shoreside electricity by 2030.” Ben Murray, Maritime UK chief executive, agreed
with Laurent that the cruise sector did not currently have “absolute zero technologies”. But he added that liquefied natural gas (LNG) – one of the cleanest non-electric fuels currently available to cruise lines – had a “role to play” in terms of emission reduction. Laurent said a “zero-emitting” cruise ship could
come online as early as 2030. Elsewhere, Frank
Del Rio, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings president and chief executive, said governments and private enterprise partnerships could help develop green technologies further.
Ben Murray
travelweekly.co.uk
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