Cruise: Port Everglades, Saint John
Greater Fort Lauderdale Targets Pre- and Post-Cruise Options from Port Everglades
A recent study identifies Broward County's Port Everglades as an evolving tourism magnet for the Greater Fort Lauderdale area.
Sixty-two percent of the cruise passengers surveyed for the study stayed at least one night prior to their cruise vacation, staying an average of 3.4 nights, and 21 percent planned to stay an average of 2.6 nights after their cruise.
"This study validates what we have long known - that our local economy benefits from the cruise industry. But, we are seeing that hoteliers are taking advantage of the opportunities that having a cruise port in their backyard offers," said Port Director Steven Cernak, PPM®. "Just look at the number of new hotels that have opened around Port Everglades in recent years and the creative pre- and post-cruise vacation packages offered on Sunny.org in the Cruise & Play section."
Expenditures before and after the cruise were nearly identical. However, guests planned to spend more money on land tours after the cruise than before the cruise -- $80 before the cruise and $133 after it.
The Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau encourages pre- and post-cruise vacation stays through its "Cruise & Play" section on the sunny.org website. The "Cruise & Play" section features as list of hotels offering shuttle service to and from the cruise port and airport, as well as deals on hotels, attractions and special discounts available just by showing your cruise card or cruise documents. In addition, travel agents have the opportunity to become certified Greater Fort Lauderdale experts with the Greater Fort Lauderdale Specialist program, offered in conjunction with Travel Agent Academy.
Another benefit to cruising is the port's proximity to Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL). More than 21 percent of the cruise guests surveyed said that they came directly from FLL, and 66 percent said they selected FLL based on its close proximity to the Port.
FLL is located within two miles of Port Everglades and is accessible by taxi, shuttle or bus transfer from the cruise line. The port is also within 30 miles of Miami International Airport (MIA), an approximate 40-minute drive.
Port Everglades is one of the world’s three busiest cruise ports in the world, with more than 3.7 million passengers in 2015. Nine cruise lines, one ferry and more than 40 cruise ships sail from the South Florida seaport.
Saint John Forecasts Boost in Cruise Ship Passenger Numbers in 2016
The 2016 cruise season is set to open at Port Saint John with the May 9 docking of Fed Olsen Cruise Lines’ 1230-passenger capacity Balmoral.
Through the end of the season on October 28, the port is expecting 64 ship calls and 144,000 passengers, up from 49 calls and 106,505 passengers in 2015.
"Our passenger numbers for 2016 represent an increase of 20 percent over last year," says Jim Quinn, president & CEO of Port Saint John. "That is great news for Southern New Brunswick, and for its many tourism-related businesses."
This year’s schedule includes first-time calls by Carnival Cruise Line’s Carnival Sunshine, Holland America’s Rotterdam, Royal Caribbean International’s Anthem of the Seas, Hapag Lloyd’s Europa 2, Azamara Club Cruises’ Azamara Quest, and Phoenix Reisen’s Amadea.
Azamara Club Cruises is a new Port Saint John cruise client. Azamara Quest is due October 1 with about 700 passengers.
Blount Small Ship Adventures will return this year, staying dockside for five days.
Disney Cruise Line is returning to Saint John after a four-year absence with the docking of Disney Magic on October 4.
During the season, the port is expecting 8 double-ship days, 4 triple-ship days, with the busiest day to come on October 9 when it will welcome 8,900 passengers and 3,500 crew members.
According to the port authority, cruise activity at Port Saint John contributes roughly C$25 annually to New Brunswick's economy.