17/09/2019 01:48 PM
Cruise season officially begins in NSW
350 ships set to bring billions of tourist dollars to NSW as the 2019/2020 cruise season officially begins for NSW: the home of cruise in Australia.
The 2019/20 cruise season officially started today (17 September) as the Majestic Princess and her 3560 passengers sailed into Sydney Harbour.
350 cruise ships, including six ships making their maiden calls, are scheduled to visit NSW this season, bringing around 1.6 million passengers to our shores, making NSW the home of cruise in Australia.
Image: The Majestic Princess arrives in Sydney, marking the start of the 2019/2020 cruise season
The cruise industry creates $2.75 billion for the NSW economy each year, supports around 10,000 jobs and creates around $800 million in wages.
Sydney — named as Best Australian Homeport by Cruise Critic AU last year and as Best Australian Port in Cruise Passenger’s latest Readers' Choice Awards — will host 317 cruise ship visits at its two terminals: the Overseas Passenger Terminal and White Bay Cruise Terminal, owned and managed by Port Authority of New South Wales.
Regional NSW will also benefit from cruise tourism this season. Port of Eden will host a record 22 cruise ship visits — the most ever in a single cruise season for the Sapphire Coast — while Newcastle Harbour welcomes 11 cruise ship visits.
Image: The Pacific Explorer arrives at the new Eden Cruise Wharf
For the first time, cruise ships over 325m in length will be able to berth at the Port of Eden thanks to the recent opening of Eden Cruise Wharf.
The $44-million dollar port upgrade aims to cement Eden’s place on the Australian cruise map and drive economic growth in the region.
Cruise continues to be Australia’s fastest-growing tourism sector and creates $4.6 billion for the national economy every year. New South Wales is one of the world's premier tourist destinations and Australia’s cruise ship capital.
2019/20 cruise season snapshot
- NSW will welcome a scheduled 350 cruise ship visits
- Sydney Harbour will host a scheduled 317 cruise ship visits
- Sydney will welcome six maiden calls: Ruby Princess, Vasco da Gama, Explorer Dream, Ocean Dream, Boudicca and Carnival Splendor
- Port of Eden will host a scheduled 22 cruise ship visits
- Newcastle Harbour will host a scheduled 11 cruise ship visits
- Around 1.6 million passengers will pass through Sydney’s two terminals (Overseas Passenger Terminal and White Bay Cruise Terminal) and NSW regional ports during the season
- Visitors to the Overseas Passenger Terminal will get to experience the OPT’s newly installed gangways — custom-built to increase the terminal’s operational efficiency, improve passenger experience and better support visits from larger cruise ships — including Quantum-class vessels that carry over 5,000 passengers
- Cruise season runs from the arrival of the first international ship to 30 April 2020
See the full Sydney cruise schedule
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