Port of Gothenburg starts cruise season
The first cruise ship of the year will arrive at the Port of Gothenburg today, marking the start of the 2015 cruise season. A total of 52 ships carrying 100,000 passengers are due to visit Gothenburg in 2015.
Early on Thursday morning, AIDAcara will make her way into Frihamnen at the Port of Gothenburg. On board will be 1,200 Germans eagerly looking forward to the day ahead. She is one of 52 cruise ships – carrying 100,000 passengers – that are due to visit Gothenburg in 2015.
"This year we will be welcoming more large cruise ships to Gothenburg than previously. The general trend in the cruise industry is towards bigger ships carrying more passengers," said Jill Söderwall, Head of Cruise Operations at the Port of Gothenburg.
2014 was a record season with 73 calls and 108,000 passengers. The number of calls this year has fallen to 52 although the number of passengers has remained at roughly the same high level.
The fall in the number of calls has not just affected Gothenburg but the whole of Scandinavia and the Baltic countries.
"The number of visits by cruise ships is down by around 5 per cent throughout the region. Instead, bigger ships have been brought into service carrying more passengers, which could be the result of new demands for cleaner and thus more expensive marine fuel in the North Sea and the Baltic," said Jill Söderwall.
Cruise tourism is an important source of revenue for the city’s’ visitor industry. During a visit each person spends an average of 700 kronor on food, shopping and entertainment (1,200 if excursions are included). This year cruise tourism will add 70 million kronor to the visitor industry.
The Port of Gothenburg and Göteborg & Co have focused for a number of years on marketing Gothenburg as a cruise destination and have induced more international cruise lines to add the city to their routes. They have also persuaded more ships to stay overnight. This year six ships will remain in port.
"Overnight stays are incredibly positive for the city and the port. They generate more revenue for the port and the same time the tourists get to explore the city at night time," said Sara Sundaeus, Cruise Manager at Göteborg & Co.
The season will run through to October 18 with one Christmas visit in December.
