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More than 60,000 cruise ship tourists expected in Prince Rupert

The 333 % increase comes from an additional 16 scheduled calls to port
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Prince Rupert will see more than 60,000 estimated cruise ship passengers from now to Sept. 30, announced Prince Rupert Port Authority, on May 6. (Photo: Supplied)

A 330 per cent increase in cruise ship passengers has been estimated by the Port of Prince Rupert after 16 new vessel calls were added to the previously published 2022 schedule, the organization announced on May 6.

The increase will welcome an additional 46,000 passengers than the previously announced 14,010, on April 4. The city’s shores will expect 43 calls to port and potentially more than 60,622 passengers to visit Prince Rupert between now and Sept. 30.

A new addition to the vessel lineup is the Ruby Princess operated by Princess Cruises. She will make her inaugural berth in the city on May 17. The Rupert port will be a regular stop on the ships Alaska itinerary every 10 days. The vessel has a carrying capacity of 4,180 passengers and crew.

“The exciting late addition of the Ruby Princess to the Port of Prince Rupert’s cruise schedule will give a significant boost to the local tourism industry in the coming months, and we are working with local operators and other community stakeholders to prepare for this large influx of visitors,” said Shaun Stevenson, president and CEO of the Prince Rupert Port Authority (PRPA).

In addition to the Ruby Princess, PRPA has also added another vessel call from Windstar’s Star Breeze on September 7 to its roster.

It may be a record-breaking season for the cruise passenger traffic in Prince Rupert when on Sept. 23 a double-vessel call from Holland America and Princess Cruise Lines planned has the potential to set a single-day record for cruise passengers visiting with more than 4,700 anticipated. The most passengers welcomed to port was in 2008 with 103,635 passengers visiting the city.

Between 2004 to 2019, Prince Rupert welcomed approximately 655,000 passengers with an estimated direct economic impact of over $50 million. At Prince Rupert’s modest 2019 levels of cruise activity, an estimated $1.8 million of economic revenue was brought to businesses in the community.

The Prince Rupert Port Authority (PRPA) has collaborated with cruise operators, the Association of Canadian Port Authorities, the Government of Canada, and a variety of stakeholders to ensure the safe resumption of cruise activity at all Canadian ports. Prince Rupert serves as a strategic Canadian port-of-call within cruise vessel itineraries as part of the Alaskan cruise market.

“Taking the latest 2022 projections into account, Alaska could see as many as 1.57 million passengers this year. With strong prospects for recovery and growth within this market, Prince Rupert has the opportunity to attract significantly more visitors than it has in recent years,” PRPA stated in a press release.

“We appreciate the efforts being made by everyone to accommodate this schedule change and to welcome visitors back to the area as we ramp up for the return of cruise tourism in the community,” Stevenson said.


 K-J Millar | Editor and Multimedia Journalist 
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