The MV Seabourn Odyssey is scheduled to be one of two cruise ships docking in Nanaimo this summer, marking a return for the local cruise ship industry. (Dreamstime)

By Alex Rawnsley

tourism boost

Nanaimo secures two cruise ship arrivals for 2024

Mar 19, 2024 | 2:12 PM

NANAIMO — After many years, it’s finally cruise season again in the Harbour City.

The Nanaimo Port Authority announced on Tuesday, March 19, two vessels had booked arrivals locally for the 2024 cruise season.

The MV Seabourn Odyssey, currently sailing off the coast of Vietnam, will dock in Nanaimo on May 9, while the Oceania Regatta will stay on Aug. 26. It is currently travelling between Australia and Tahiti.

Andrea Thomas, manager of cruise development for the Port of Nanaimo, said in addition to the two this year, four are currently booked in 2025 and at least another two in 2026.

“We’ve got this beautiful cruise ship terminal located right downtown…and we have this unique product in our shore excursion options as well…given our geographical location, our proximity to the central Island and even out to Port Alberni.”

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Thomas and the Port are looking to market Nanaimo as a more attractive option than both Victoria and Vancouver, particularly for smaller and more niche cruises.

“We can show cruise passengers parts of the Island that they likely wouldn’t see if they were headed into Victoria or otherwise headed to Vancouver which is already extremely congested. We have a lot more availability here.”

The scheduled visits are among the first passenger cruise ship traffic in Nanaimo since before the COVID-19 pandemic, with the industry overall still struggling to recover.

Three ships were due to visit a total of six times in 2020, however travel restrictions cancelled the arrivals which were to start in May.

No ships with visitors aboard docked in 2021, 2022 or 2023, a far cry from the goal of 25-30 ships annually tying up in Nanaimo when the cruise ship dock opened in 2011.

Nanaimo did welcome crew aboard the Silver Muse in May 2022, with the ship docking briefly for some maintenance ahead of the Alaska cruise season.

The Seabourn Odyssey carries between 450 and 540 passengers along with 330 crew. Its seven passenger decks include 225 cabins with the total ship’s length reaching just under 200 metres, or 650 feet.

The Oceania Regatta is slightly smaller on the water, 181 metres or 594 feet, however carries between 698 and 803 passengers and 372 crew.

Five passenger decks feature 349 cabins.

Thomas told NanaimoNewsNOW they’re actively trying to bring in smaller cruises which offer more luxury experiences for their guests.

“The passengers that typically book with those cruise lines have a little bit deeper pockets than some of the other cruise lines and they want the unique experience, to come and support the local economy in the port’s they’re visiting.”

She added it’s not uncommon for passengers on board cruises to take note of the experiences they’ve had, then return to certain cities for a longer visit.

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