Nanaimo’s cruise ship season officially underway

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The MS Noordam enters Nanaimo Harbour shortly before Noon on Friday, April 24. (Image Credit: Jordan Davidson/NanaimoNewsNOW)

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Passengers disembarked on Friday and prepared to venture out across the mid-Island on a variety of pre-planned excursions.

Some were staying closer to their home for the day and exploring areas of Nanaimo.

The vessel will leave Nanaimo around 9 p.m., bound for Victoria before wrapping up the seven-day journey in Seattle on Sunday morning.

The Noordam is one of eight arrivals on the schedule for 2026.

Kelly added the increase in traffic to the port has multiple benefits

“What this provides is a significant economic opportunity, not just for our tourism businesses and local businesses downtown, but for our waterfront workforce. Operationally, this provides additional earning opportunities for our longshore workers, our marine pilots, and Canada Border Services agents.”

The first passengers departed around 12:30 p.m. on Friday, bound for tours around Nanaimo and the central Island. (Image Credit: Jordan Davidson/NanaimoNewsNOW)

The Nanaimo Port Authority is expecting one cruise ship every month between April and October, with the exception of September when two are due.

The Noordam will return Sept. 25 and will again close out the local cruise season on Oct. 9.

Eight arrivals this year is double the four which docked in 2025, which doubled the two arrivals in 2024 as the industry emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Three ships were due to visit a total of six times in 2020, with visits set to start in May.

When the Port Authority dock opened in 2011, a goal was set of having 25-30 ships tie up annually in Nanaimo.

Watching on Friday were Ante and Diana Benic, with their son, Dan, one of the officers behind the controls of the Noordam as it docked in Nanaimo.

The family lives in the Harbour City, with Dan currently in training on board the vessel.

“Very excited because that’s something he’s done all his life, and when he graduated, he said he was going to join the Coast Guard, but now he’s gone even further, and we’re very proud of him,” Diana told NanaimoNewsNOW.

She added being on the water was somewhat of a family tradition, with multiple seafarers across different generations.

Dan’s daughter Zara was also watching on.

The Noordam sits docked at the Port of Nanaimo, easily visible from Maffeo Sutton Park. (Image Credit: Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

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