Vago spoke during a special address this morning in Málaga ahead of the Seatrade Cruise Med industry keynote sponsored by Cruise Saudi and presented in partnership with CLIA.
Buoyed by passengers' enthusiasm
‘Our ships continued to sail through the Med in what has been a great summer. We don’t want to measure this season by numbers but by the momentum… we have witnessed our guests’ enthusiasm. They brought proof our industry is back,' he said.
MedCruise President Figen Ayan expressed her views on what makes the region standout for cruise lines, noting, ‘We are used to doing business by embracing our flaws, shaking hands… Another thing in our DNA is definitely collaboration. We have considerably widened our field of partnership.’
Cruise activity in the Mediterranean restarted amid the pandemic with just three cruise lines. In September 2021, the region received 57 cruise ships.
The ‘Most comprehensive tourist destination in the world’
Arturo Bernal, councillor for tourism for Andalucia’s regional government, described Andalucia as the ‘Most comprehensive tourist destination in the world.’ He said, ‘Our land, our people can really make a difference in this industry. Our rating as a cruise destination improves day by day.’
The remarks were followed by Álvaro Rodriguez Dapena, president, Ports of Spain who asserted, ‘We work together to look for the best solutions… We have a very good digitilisation process.’ He said Spanish ports were ‘working hard on the energy transition’ and ‘a big project’ to provide shore power to vessels.’
More shore power on the way
Vago said that globally, 66% of cruise ships will be able to connect to shore power in the next five years, with just 0.6% cruise currently equipped with the capability. Urging cooperation, he highlighted the Port of Southampton’s success in installing shorepower: the Horizon cruise terminal additonally has more than 2,000 solar panels.
Ships on order
Some 71 cruise ships are on order for delivery between 2022 and 2028, and 90% of those will be built in Europe, said Vago. This contributes more than €46b to the economy, generating employment in shipbuilding that ‘feeds supply chains that extend beyond [cruising].’
Pre-and post-cruise trends
Some 84% of cruisers state they wish to cruise again and 67% of non-cruisers are open to cruising, according to Vago, who said ‘both indications are higher than before the pandemic.’
He explained a notable number of passengers are staying in destinations pre- and post-cruise, contributing to local economies: ‘It shows the public’s confidence in our industry, and also the strong economic impact that extends beyond the sailings.’
Cruise Saudi
Miguel Reyna, chief, asset development & port operations officer at Cruise Saudi, one of MedCruise’s newest members, seized the chance to inform attendees that 250m people in Europe, Asia and Africa live within a three-hour flight from the Red Sea and the Arabian Gulf.
Cruising in Saudi ‘did not exist until a couple of years ago,’ he stated, ‘we’re very excited about the opportunities that brings.’ He said the country’s ‘strategic location with superior connectivity’ and its beauty were the main reasons for its potential.
The destination received 50,000 cruisers last year. It recently opened a new port, Damam.
Seatrade Cruise Med is taking place September 14-15 in Målaga.
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