VICTORIA – Victoria’s seven millionth cruise ship passenger recently arrived on Royal Caribbean’s Explorer of the Seas, one of approximately 550,000 visitors to travel to the region via cruise this season.
The arrival marks an important milestone for tourism in Victoria, proving that the city and region are growing in popularity with national and international visitors. Victoria began as a cruise destination in 1978, with 20,000 visitors arriving on 30 ship calls.
The first millionth passenger arrived in 2003, and today, the city is Canada’s busiest cruise ship port of call, a popular stop on many Alaska and Pacific Northwest itineraries.
“Victoria has so much to offer to international visitors,” said Greater Victoria Harbour Authority CEO Ian Robertson. “It’s not surprising that the city continues to attract attention from travellers and cruise lines. I look forward to welcoming this very special passenger to our city.”
A recently released report, commissioned by Cruise Lines International Association, revealed that the cruise industry brings direct economic value of $130 million to the Victoria region annually, an increase of $30 million over 2012 (The Economic Contribution of the International Cruise Industry in Canada 2016; Business Research & Economic Advisors).
The direct value per ship is $600,000. Cruise-related spending in Canada rose 34 per cent between 2012 and 2016, with more than $2 billion in economic impact annually in BC alone.
The cruise season will wrap up on October 5. In 2017, Victoria will have ship calls from cruise lines including Princess Cruise Lines, Holland America Line, Norwegian Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruise Line, Carnival Cruise Lines, Oceania Cruises, Regent Seven Seas, Crystal Cruises, Disney Cruise Line, Hapag-Lloyd Line, Seabourn, and ResidenSea Inc.
Updated arrival and departure schedules can be found at the following link.
