Aussie cruise potential blocked by infrastructure

Infrastructure is the latest hot topic floating around the Australian cruise industry.

CLIA’s Cruise3Sixty event landed in Sydney on Friday, with cruise experts from around the world converging to chat all things cruise.

And while a number of positives were mentioned in terms of cruising down under, infrastructure was the word of the day, with some saying the challenge could hinder Australia’s booming industry.

“Nobody is building small ships anymore,” Carnival Cruise Line’s VP Australia Jennifer Vanderkreeke told Travel Weekly at the event on Friday.

“The cruise industry is seeing a growth of 20% each year, and eventually it will reach a level where there will be no more room in Australia. We have to book by 2020 just to get a space.”

Vanderkreeke explained that Australia is one of the key markets in cruising, with demand ballooning every year.

“Australians love to travel, they’ve got plenty of holiday time, and they love the water,” she said, citing these as reasons for the Aussie cruise boom.

But with space such an issue, Vanderkreeke warned that seasonal offshoots are heading to places like China, who offer more space for bigger ships.

“Quantum of the Seas has announced she’s going to China, but who knows if she’ll come to Australia,” she said.

Earlier in a panel session, Vanderkreeke had mentioned a possibility of Carnival Legend heading to Australia year-round, however only if Brisbane could offer a port with enough capacity for the cruise ship.

“The propensity for cruise is greater in Brisbane than in Sydney,” Vanderkreeke told TW, adding that Carnival hoped it would build a space large enough for its ships in the future, thus allowing the cruise line to spend more time in Australian waters.

Fellow cruise expert, Royal Caribbean Cruise Line’s VP of commercial Sean Treacy, had similar concerns, stressing that without significant changes and multi-berth ports, cruising in Australia was highly limited.

“Some major changes in infrastructure are needed if ships like Oasis of the Seas are to head down under to Sydney,” he said.

CLIA’s Australasia general manager Brett Jardine also told TW that while the need for greater infrastructure in Australia was a major issue, it was a long and slow process.

“The wheels of the government move slowly,” Jardine told TW on Friday. “There is a lot of discussion happening, but this discussion needs to turn into action.”

“But this issue is not unique to Australia – there are plenty of other countries facing the same problem.”

“We’re a victim of our own success,” he added, referring to the expanding Aussie cruise demand, despite the lack of infrastructure support.

Jardine said there are a number of options on the table for new ports, but that each comes with their own pros and cons.

“Garden Island is one option up for discussion, but the possibility of having 3000 tourists wandering around the navy base also poses a security risk to the area,” he told TW as an example of how difficult the selection process was.

Jardine also said that the Harbour Bridge, despite its iconic status, is simply not high enough for the larger ships being built nowadays to fit under, making White Bay Cruise Terminal even less accessible.

“There’s no magic wand we can wave to create a solution.”

“There’s no magic wand we can wave to create a solution,” Jardine said, adding that he doubted an answer would be found in the near future.

The cruise industry saw a massive AUD$3.2 billion pumped into the Australian economy in 2013, as well as supporting 14,000 jobs, and paying $940 million of wages.

And with 68% of the target consumer market interested in taking a cruise in the next three years, the discussion around Australian cruise infrastructure is now more imperative than ever.

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Email the Travel Weekly team at traveldesk@travelweekly.com.au

brett jardine carnival clia cruise lines international association cruise3sixty jennifer vanderkreeke