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Cruise tourism booms but challenges remain

2014-03-27 13:44 Shanghai Daily Web Editor: Wang YuXia
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Royal Caribbean International’s Mariner of the Seas

Royal Caribbean International's Mariner of the Seas

This will be a busy year for Shanghai's cruise industry, as a record number of vessels will dock in the city and preferential policies are expected to be announced.

Confirmed visits by international cruise liners total 554 this year, soaring 42 percent above 2013, the Shanghai Exit-Entry Frontier Inspection Station said.

Shanghai has become one of the most promising cruise markets in East Asia and some cruise liners are making the city their home port, said Zhu Guojian, deputy director of the policy and law division of the Shanghai Tourism Administration.

The cruise market has been moving east in recent years, the market is growing in China and flourishing in Shanghai, Zhu said.

"Shanghai is becoming a magnet for big cruise ships and its home port position of international cruise ships is taking shape," he said.

This year, the city's two major cruise terminals, the Wusong International Cruise Terminal and Shanghai International Passenger Transportation Center, become the home ports for this year of important vessels. They include Royal Caribbean International's Voyager of the Seas and Mariner of the Seas, Costa Cruise's Costa Victoria and Atlantica, and HNA Tourism's Henna.

The Sapphire Princess of Carnival Corp will make Shanghai its home port for the first time.

The number of cruise tourists to Shanghai is expected to surge around 103 percent from last year and reach 2 million by 2020, according to Shanghai Tourism Administration.

The Wusong International Cruise Terminal in Baoshan District, one of Asia's busiest cruise ports, said it expects to berth more than 200 vessels this year, almost doubling the figure last year.

Shanghai aims to become a cruise ship center equal to Singapore and Hong Kong by the end of 2015. At that time, the direct economic contribution of the cruise industry to the city is estimated to reach 5 billion yuan (US$800 million) to 8 billion yuan.

Authorities said they will enact preferential policies.

Quick access for big cruises with a large number of passengers and a short docking time will be provided to boost efficiency.

Hongkou District plans to open a duty-free shop at the international tourism harbor for liners in the North Bund area.

The Global Duty Free Store, featuring the world's major luxury brands, will mainly serve tourists from abroad, said Xie Rongrong, a political adviser with Hongkou District.

At this time, foreign tourists can only shop at duty-free stores at the departure terminals at cruise harbors. With the opening of new stores, they will be able to shop immediately after disembarking.

A 72-hour visa-free stay for cruise ship passengers docking in Shanghai is also expected this year. Last year, a similar policy at airports for transit passengers from 45 countries attracted more than 15,000 foreign visitors.

Officials at the Wusong terminal said the policy will provide convenience for tourists and encourage cruise operators to provide diversified products.

Despite the big numbers, the cruise market still faces challenges.

The main problem is that the route involving a Shanghai stop is not diversified, according to a report by the Shanghai Statistics Bureau.

It said South Korea is the only major destination for cruise ships docking in the city, and that few routes covered Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore. There are even fewer cruises to Europe and Oceania.

Meanwhile, overseas tourists, around 66,000, only accounted for 16 percent of cruise passengers visiting the city between January and July last year, the report said.

The bureau suggested that more routes could be explored based on Shanghai's geographic location.

The Shanghai Tourism Administration said it will gradually develop longer routes to Southeast Asian countries and make a Taiwan route operation.

It will also promote an insurance plan in case of cruise ship emergencies and study the feasibility of setting up a domestic cruise ship company registered in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone.

Travel agencies said cruise tourism is booming.

The cruising schedule has been prolonged this year compared with last year and there has been a greater concentration of dockings, online travel operator Ctrip said.

In the past, cruise operations started in late March, but the earliest ship embarked in January this year. Tours are to operate through November this year, compared with October.

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