Cruise has been described as the canary in the coalmine for tourism and right now it’s seasick.
One New Zealand-based operator says the country is over-regulated and overpriced and is now discouraging the big overseas cruise lines from coming here.
Last month, Disney Cruise Line confirmed its exit from New Zealand, saying it won’t return, with costs in this region being blamed.
Industry group, the Cruise Line Association, says that while Government ministers now understand the importance of the $1.3 billion a year industry, cost increases and difficulties operating here mean it’s in the doldrums for two years at least.
Nathan Russ, operations director of Heritage Expeditions, is more pessimistic. He says bold statements and action by the Government now would take at least three to four years to attract the big operators here.
Heritage operates boutique voyages, many to the Subantarctic Islands, which attract the high-net worth, high-value tourists from around the world that the industry wants to attract.
But he says the country is sending out the wrong messages.
‘’We’re over-regulated and overpriced ourselves out of the market,’’ he says.
A turnaround day at Auckland will cost the 125m-long Heritage Adventurer $30,000 in port charges and fees. Turning around the same ship in Osaka with access to a dedicated cruise terminal will cost $5000.
Russ says Department of Conservation charges for passengers landing on subantarctic islands have increased from $405 to $1056 per person and, at short notice, Heritage will now have to add this to the ticket price. He fears some passengers will cancel. While not such a problem for wealthy international visitors, shorter voyages attract Kiwis, who are more price-sensitive.
‘’After paying all their taxes for how many years and many having been involved in conservation, they now have to pay $1056 for the right to land on this island.’’
Heritage operates a small regional coastal vessel in New Zealand and faces biofouling regulations, which are different to the MPI regulations.
‘’ New Zealand’s a great destination. It’s got a lot to offer, but I just think we’ve got to a point now where we’ve gone so far out of whack with the world that we’ve got to try and get back into alignment, otherwise ships aren’t going to come back.’’
New Zealand Cruise Association chief executive Jacqui Lloyd says New Zealand is at a tipping point for cruise lines.
‘’I feel sometimes cruise is a little bit of the canary in the coal mine. What happens with us in the sense of the tourism set to trends that roll into other areas.’’
The Government was strongly represented at the association’s recent conference and she says the Minister of Tourism and Hospitality, Louise Upston, is focusing on, and leading, a whole-of-Government approach to the sector, which is very much needed.
I think we’ve got to a point now where we’ve gone so far out of whack with the world that we’ve got to try and get back into alignment, otherwise ships aren’t going to come back.
The cruise association’s chairperson, Tanya Tompkins, says while the last 12 months have brought some signs of operational stability, the outlook ahead is deeply concerning, and it demands collective focus, leadership, and urgent action.
The 2024/25 season has, on the surface, appeared relatively stable. New Zealand experienced fewer port calls and a 20% decline in passenger numbers compared to the record-breaking 2023/24 season, but there were fewer weather disruptions and fewer biofouling-related diversions, largely because fewer ships visited.
Cruise guests continue to rate their New Zealand experience among the best in the world, consistently scoring above 8.5 out of 10.
But the outlook for the 2025/26 season is grim. At this stage, projected ship calls are more than 40% down on 2023/24, taking us below the levels seen in 2017/18.
‘’This is not a gentle contraction. It’s not a softening of demand. It is a steep and deeply worrying decline that if not reversed quickly threatens to erode the infrastructure, investment, and human capability that underpins cruise in New Zealand,’’ says Tompkins.
The association identifies four key challenges:
Lloyd says unlike airlines, capacity is not such a problem as many ships were being built and demand among passengers is not a problem as New Zealand was desirable.
‘’They want to come here but that supply is going to places like Japan, like the Caribbean and Southeast Asia, and not coming here,’’ she says.
‘’We’re the only country that’s seeing the reduction of the scale. Every other place around the world is seeing increased growth.’’