P.E.I. saw record number of cruise ship passengers in July
It’s a 62 per cent increase from the last record year, 2019
The Port of Charlottetown says it had a record number of cruise ship passengers in July.
More than 16,500 visited the city on nine different ships. That's up from about 10,000 in July 2019, the year that held the last record.
Mike Cochrane, Port of Charlottetown CEO, says the Island's attractions are a big draw.
"I mean, P.E.I. is a paradise in the summertime," said Cochrane. Most of the ships docking here go from New York to Boston to Montreal, making stops along the way, he said.
While fall is still the busiest season for cruise ships on P.E.I., he said summer popularity has been on the rise.
"Everything is beautiful here in the fall with the fall foliage, and it was a great strategy to start to attract this industry to grow the shoulder season in P.E.I.," Cochrane said.
"And now what we're seeing is, we're definitely there and they're saying, 'wow, this is fantastic.'" So let's see if we can get some benefit and look at the summer season and the spring season."
Spending more than $100 a day
Seeing more passengers in the summer is a big help to local businesses, said Cochrane.
"Bus drivers, the tour operators, to entrepreneurs or private businesses, it really helps boost the tourism economy for the province," he said. "And basically it's walking traffic."
Tourism P.E.I. does exit surveys for tourists that arrive on cruise ships, and in 2023 found each passenger spends an average of $138 a day while on P.E.I.
In total, the cruise industry will bring more than $22 million to P.E.I. in 2024, said Cochrane.
Much of that spend is in the downtown Charlottetown area within walking distance of the port, he said. But cruise ship passengers also take tour buses to other parts of the Island. It's what Cochrane calls "managed tourism."
"When they're coming, you know how many are coming, you know what to expect, you can pre arrange it and you know when they depart," Cochrane said.
Return visitors
Cochrane said research estimates that six out of 10 cruise ship passengers will return to a destination for a longer vacation after their cruise.
"So in future years, it could lead to a lot of repeat visitation for Prince Edward Island," he said.
The summer cruise ship season on P.E.I as a whole is also continuing to grow, with the same number of ships expected next July.
But, Cochrane said, "we're expecting a little bit higher in passenger numbers."
The Port hopes that Charlottetown's cruise ship season will consistently be six months long in future years, and be steady from April to October.
"People are really starting to discover and enjoy P.E.I., and it's becoming multigenerational," Cochrane said. "So what we're seeing are grandparents, parents … grandkids, all coming together."
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
with files from Laura Meader