THE CRUISE shipping industry ended the year 2002 on a spectacular note, according to the latest Jamaica Tourist Board data.
Cruise passenger arrivals numbered 865,419 last year, representing a 3 per cent increase over the level in troubled 2001. But it was still 4.6 per cent below the much stronger arrivals level in 2000.
The industry ended the year on its strongest note yet however. In December the country had 118,050 cruise passenger arrivals, a 61.9 per cent increase over the level the previous December. It was also the largest number of cruise passengers Jamaica has ever welcomed in any one month.
Despite the damaging impact of the September 11 terrorist attacks in the United States, the country's main market, the cruise industry has been gradually clawing its way back to health. And even though the industry has been recovering, it was the outcome in December which was responsible for changing what would otherwise have been an overall decline into an overall advance in arrival numbers.
During the core January-April Winter season last year, the country had 323,187 cruise passenger arrivals. This represented a 13.7 per cent fall from the level for the equivalent period in 2001.
Over the following eight months the country had 542,232 cruise passengers, giving a 16.4 per cent rise over the similar period in 2001. Combining the two periods gave the overall 3 per cent increase in cruise passenger arrivals.
While cruise passenger arrivals rose, cruise ship calls fell by 6.8 per cent to 397 calls. Though fewer ships called at Jamaican ports, vessel capacities have been increasing, resulting in the overall increase in passenger arrivals, industry experts say.
The main port-of-call remains Ocho Rios, with 675,586 passengers. This represented a 13.2 per cent increase over the 2001 level.
Montego Bay followed up with 189,761 passengers, representing a 12 per cent increase over the 2001 level.
