• 2 min de lectura
• 2 min de lectura
New Zealand is not only competing for cruise ship deployment with Australia and other destinations in the South Pacific, but with Alaska, Japan, the Caribbean, the Mediterranean, Northern Europe, South America and many other regions, the executive director Australasia and Asia for Cruise Lines International Association Joel Katz told delegates at Thursday's New Zealand Cruise Association annual conference in Auckland.
Katz said cruise lines assess consumer demand, but demand alone is not enough.
"They also consider operating costs, port availability, regulations, infrastructure, fuel, itinerary efficiency and the overall reliability of the destination," he said.
"A cruise line may want to come here, its guests may want to come here, the communities and tourism businesses may want the ship to come, but the itinerary still has to work operationally and economically."
He said every additional cost, duplicated process, uncertain requirements or late charges are considered.
When deployment decisions are being made across a global network, these considerations matter.
"New Zealand needs to offer the industry three things — confidence, certainty and competitiveness," Katz said.
"Confidence means cruise lines must believe that New Zealand wants cruise tourism and recognises its wider value," he said.
"The industry can adapt to reasonable requirements, but it needs sufficient lead time, national coordination and confidence that the rules will not change after commercial decisions have already been made."
Katz said competitiveness does not mean New Zealand must be the cheapest.
"It means operating conditions and costs should be transparent, proportionate and internationally competitive," he said.
"Industry understands that providing infrastructure, border services and port operations has a cost.
"But continually increasing or layering charges ultimately affects deployment, itinerary length and the number of ports a ship can visit."
Katz said cruise lines want destinations that are successful, they want guests to have exceptional experiences, they want communities to see tangible value from cruise tourism and they want long-term partnerships in the places they visit.
"That is entirely achievable here," he said.
