Cruise season is underway as the Norwegian Bliss became the first of the season to arrive in Victoria.
“There’ll be 315 ships calling into Victoria and about 910,000 passengers,” said Robert Lewis-Manning, CEO of Greater Victoria Harbour Authority.
However, he said the cruise ship season will not be as big as last year in Victoria, as some will travel to other parts of B.C., such as Prince Rupert. Victoria is a part of the Alaskan cruise market, according to Lewis-Manning, and many will include the Capital Region in their itinerary.
“Ships will come into Victoria before they head back to Seattle.”
Victoria’s tourism market continues to improve post-COVID-19, said Victoria Mayor Marianne Alto.
“I am pretty confident it will be a fantastic season.”
Alto is looking forward to welcoming new guests to Victoria, adding it is important to create an experience that people want to come back for.
“It’s not just this time that they’re here. It’s the impact of the return visits, which is so important to the visitor industry.”
It’s also about knowing what makes people want to visit a location when travelling abroad, Alto said.
“That’s important for people not just to want to live there, but actually to visit and consider coming back.”
The demand for cruises is becoming stronger, said Lewis-Manning, with advanced booking going into 2025 and 2026.
“I think there’s a lot of optimism that people are going to experience this region,” he said.
According to Alto, more cruises will mean more people in the streets of Victoria, creating a large volume of customers and crowds.
“The flipside of volume is that it brings a lot of interest and money into the city.”
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