214 Competition for cruise interest across the world is intense. The South Pacific region, which comprises Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands, receives 3.7 per cent of global cruise travellers, according to the Pacific Tourism Organisation (PTO). In contrast, the Caribbean dominates with 32.6 per cent of business, followed by the Mediterranean with 21.9 per cent. Finding ways to grow the region as a popular cruise destination is one of the key goals of the South Pacific Cruise Alliance (SPCA). Each year, the nonprofit organisation brings together representatives from countries in the region to promote the South Pacific as a cruise destination at the South Pacific Cruise Forum. During the event, attendees collaborate with cruise operators and tourism boards to explore how they can create new cruise routes and initiatives to grow the South Pacific cruise market. Typically, the SPCA hosts the meetings at Seatrade Cruise Global in Florida, USA, but its second resident meeting was held in Tahiti in October 2023. State of the South Pacific cruise industry Opening the first session of the forum, SPCA president Bud Gilroy said: “Convincing cruise line stakeholders to move from a popular region [like the Caribbean] to ours is the challenge.” Gilroy was joined by Chris Cocker, CEO of PTO, and Jill Abel, CEO of the Australian Cruise Association, to share an update on the state of the South Pacific’s cruise market. PTO member countries (including Fiji, Papua New Guinea and Tahiti) received 140,000 cruise ship passengers in 2022. This represents a 140 per cent increase from 2021 but a significant decrease from the one million plus visitors recorded in 2018. The organisation says this decline SOUTH PACIFIC: REPORT Representatives from cruise lines and South Pacific ports and destinations gathered at the South Pacific Cruise Forum to address how the region can progress operations A region with a bright future
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NzQ1NTk=