69 Bud Darr (left) and Mike Corrigan, CEO of Interferry, signed a MOU for ongoing collaboration at CLIA’s Pacific Northwest Symposium per year in a country of 27 million – but providing capacity is another matter. Cruise lines must weigh cost competitiveness, regulatory certainty and operational feasibility when deciding long-term deployment. High operating costs and complex regulations aren’t unique to Australia though; ports like Santos in Brazil face similar challenges, where multiple agencies and unclear requirements can affect competitiveness. Collaboration between cruise lines and local or national authorities is key. Sharing a clear vision, transparent costs and benchmarking against comparable ports helps ensure destinations remain viable. Port costs – including navigation fees, pilotage, dockage and local taxes – can be a cruise line’s largest operational expense, often higher than crew or fuel. The CLIA 2024 economic impact study shows why this matters: cruise contributes almost $200 billion globally. What makes cruising strategically important in travel, and how does it open up destinations that traditional tourism can’t easily reach? Cruise is one of the most resilient and dynamic sectors in tourism, with nearly $80 billion committed to building new ships and passenger numbers projected to grow from 38 million in 2025 to 42 million by 2028. Cruises offer experiences that can’t be replicated on land, visiting multiple destinations with dining and entertainment included. In Alaska, for example, a seven-day cruise provides access and scenery impossible to match by land. The model also brings travellers to hard-to-reach regions, such as Antarctica, giving small ports “ Cruise contributes almost $200 billion globally”
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