A “significant drop” in cruise ship visits to Tauranga is predicted next season.

New Zealand Cruise Association chief executive Jacqui Lloyd attended the Seatrade cruise industry conference in Miami recently and says signs are pointing to fewer port visits next season.

Reasons for the drop in bookings include increased operating costs in New Zealand, higher port fees and regulatory fees from central government, difficulties around hull cleaning regulations, global competition, and concerns about access through the Red Sea, says Jacqui.

“It’s a big concern for the nation. Preliminary numbers we’re looking at are 150 to 200 port calls reduced for the country, that’s about 54,000 passengers. The risk for some of the cruise lines is just too high.”

Jacqui also cites the incident in November when Border Control denied the Pacific Adventure, en route to the Bay of Plenty, entry to the country as bad weather prevented the ship’s hull from being cleaned.

Despite that, she says the top executives she has met with at the cruise conference speak highly about their time in Tauranga, Rotorua, and the rest of the Bay of Plenty.

“They have a wonderful relationship with the port, they enjoy the great welcomes when they arrive, the tourism operators in the area really look after the people. The passengers rate their experience highly.”

Jacqui says next season’s bookings have not yet been finalised. The current season is the “largest season New Zealand has ever had”, and “perhaps we’re coming back to a balance”.

Oscar Nathan, general manager of Tourism Bay of Plenty and board member of the NZ Cruise Association, says the region has experienced two “busy and lucrative” cruise seasons since the country’s international border had reopened.

Eighty-eight cruise ship visits were currently booked at the Port of Tauranga for the 2024-25 season, Oscar says.

This is about 23 per cent lower than the 115 ships that booked to visit this season, although seven did not arrive.

Oscar expects the number of bookings will increase closer to the start of next season.

“The New Zealand Cruise Association has noted there’s been a significant drop in the number of port calls that are being estimated for the country’s 2024-25 season which, in turn, has impacted the number of cruise ships that we can expect to welcome into Tauranga Harbour.

On Wednesday, the Majestic Princess spent the day in Tauranga. It was the last cruise ship this season. Photo / Alex Cairns.

“Tauranga remains a popular destination for passengers and most are usually highly satisfied with their onshore experiences while they are here. That’s presumably why our region’s share of the cruise ship bookings, compared to other New Zealand ports, is holding steady.”

He says predicting the financial impact of fewer visits was difficult as the most recent data they have available from Stats NZ is from the 2019-20 season.

That season, which was cut short by Covid, saw a $74 million contribution to the region’s economy from electronic card spending.

Tourism Bay of Plenty will continue to work closely with the Port of Tauranga, cruise lines, local tourism operators, and the New Zealand Cruise Association to maximise the value and opportunities international visitors brought to the region, says Oscar.

Oscar Nathan, general manager of Tourism Bay of Plenty and board member of the NZ Cruise Association.

“Tourism is a very agile sector – we’re used to dealing with micro and macro influences which can impact visitor trends.”

Cruise ships are not the only source of international tourists to the region, says Oscar, and the organisation is consistently working to promote the Bay of Plenty to a range of international visitor markets.

Waimarino owner and director Blair Anderson says 20 per cent fewer cruise ships means they will be 20 per cent down, which will have detrimental effects on staff and turnover. But knowing ahead of time allows him to plan for that.

Blair says Waimarino deals with a lot of cruise ship visitors, especially through their glow worm kayaking excursions.

It has been hard to keep the business going in the last four years but the “awesome” and “amazing” staff have helped get them through, he says.

Waimarino Adventure Park owner Blair Anderson. Photo / Supplied.

Two other business owners spoken to by the Bay of Plenty Times are mostly unconcerned about the financial ramifications of fewer ship visits.

Fancy That gift shop owner Bill Campbell says it would not be the end of the world and while it would impact their finances it wouldn’t hurt them.

Mount Water Bikes owner Gordy Lockhart says cruise ships don't generate significant revenue for the business as passengers tend to be from an older demographic.

“In addition, the age-old problem of cruise ship passengers being immediately bussed out of Tauranga to Rotorua or Hobbiton very much still exists.”

RotoruaNZ chief executive Andrew Wilson. Photo / Andrew Warner.

RotoruaNZ chief executive Andrew Wilson says the cruise ship industry provided significant value to the Rotorua visitor economy and has had a positive impact for our operators overall.

“We anticipate the economic benefits will continue and we’re working closely with Tourism Bay of Plenty to further understand the full value cruise ship visitors provide to the Bay of Plenty region.”

-Bay of Plenty Times.