Australia’s cruise industry yesterday reacted angrily to news that Canada is reopening to sailings – leaving Australia as the only leading cruise nation where the government is doing nothing about a resumption.
To rub salt in the wound, an astonishing 43,000 cruisers have sent notes to their MPs – only to receive a stock letter from Tourism Minister Dan Tehan saying the government was talking to the industry.
A statement from Cruise Lines International Association Australasia this morning maintains: “Australia has been left isolated as the only major cruise nation in the world not making progress towards revival after the Canadian Government last night announced it had brought forward the end of its cruise suspension to November 1, 2021.
“Canada’s plans to revive cruise tourism place it alongside other destinations including the US, UK, Europe and parts of Asia where cruising has already resumed under stringent new health protocols and testing regimes.”
CLIA Managing Director Australasia Joel Katz said Canada’s announcement highlighted the lack of progress in Australia and called for a similar detailed plan for cruising’s revival domestically.
“Like Australia, Canada has taken a very conservative and risk-averse approach to cruising, but they’ve worked hard with industry to develop a detailed pathway towards resumption and economic recovery,” Mr Katz said. “By contrast, the Australian Government has made no progress towards establishing a framework for future cruise operations, despite the availability of comprehensive new health protocols at the international level.”
He added the suspension of cruising had already cost Australia more than $6 billion since early 2020 and had put more than 18,000 jobs at risk, including travel agents, tour operators, farmers and food suppliers, transport workers, entertainers, and technical support providers.
A group of suppliers who visited Parliament to try and raise support also issued a statement saying: “Canada is a comparable maritime nation to Australia and its decision to allow cruising from November 1 subject to its public health orders is a glimmer of hope that businesses and jobs that depend on cruising here can be saved…we are at the frontline of the devastation caused in Australia’s travel and tourism sector and we are looking for a signal from our political leaders that they want to help us save businesses and jobs, many of which have already been lost.”
A group of MPs, including Kristy McBain, the member for Eden-Monaro, have this week come out in support of working with the cruise industry, which is seeking a framework from federal government so they can set up talks with individual states on how to safely restart sailings.
The campaign has now been joined by Queensland MP and member for Leichhardt, Warren Entsch.
Both the economies of Queensland and Eden have been hit hard by the cruise ban. CLIA and the Carnival lines held a recent meeting in Parliament House lobbying for the return of domestic cruising.
Ms McBain told Cruise Passenger: “Eden businesses have been hard hit by the bushfires and then COVID-19. With a lot of local businesses relying on the cruise industry, we need to find a way to bring cruises back to kick-start the local economy and provide relief to businesses that have been resilient for far too long.”
Before the pandemic and with the completion of Eden Wharf extension, Eden was expecting its biggest cruise season with 30,000 passengers on board 22 different cruise ships visiting the region in 2019.
But Ms McBain added: “While I can’t wait for the day that a cruise ship returns to Eden Port, it’s important that our main focus is on fixing the vaccine rollout to ensure our community is safe and protected. The health and safety of our community is the highest priority and before any cruise ships come to Eden, we need to make sure procedures and protocols are air tight.”
Mr Entsch said: “It doesn’t make sense to continue to lock out cruising – we’re talking about the domestic industry here. It will take several months to return to service so lets start talking about it now, lets go through the protocols.”
Following the meeting, the MPs have written to the Prime Minister, the Tourism Minister and the Health Minister to create a framework for a return to domestic cruising in Australia.
Since the pandemic hit in March last year, our international borders have shut and the government has banned large foreign-flagged cruise lines from sailing in local waters until September 17.
The seaside town of Eden on the Sapphire Coast is a popular port of call for many cruise lines including P&O, Princess, Royal Caribbean, NCL, Celebrity and Azamara. Eden has a deep natural harbour, the third deepest in the Southern Hemisphere.
P&O Australia and Cruise Eden have released a video featuring the town’s proud history with cruise.
CLIA has been spearheading the political pressure on Canberra for a safe return to cruising in local waters.
“We have seen a welcome change in the political conversation in Australia recently and we’re now hearing from MPs who speak up in support of cruising. We have taken this further in recent days by enlisting travel agents, cruise industry suppliers and others who rely on cruising, encouraging them to meet face-to-face with their local MPs to explain the personal impact they’ve suffered.
“The new health protocols that cruise lines have adopted globally are among the most stringent to be found anywhere in tourism and they are already working successfully overseas. Australia is now the only major cruise market in the world where governments have made little progress towards their adoption, so we’ll continue to lobby hard for a responsible pathway forward for cruising,” Mr Katz told Cruise Passenger.
Eden is perfect for spotting whales, penguins, seals from its shores and at sea. It is also a great attraction for nature lovers to explore the local region. Eden and the Sapphire Coast have undergone a transformation with grower’s markets, food festivals and nature-based adventures. It’s burgeoning artisan food is gaining popularity.
Close is Bega, famous for its cheese, Pambula for its oysters and deep-sea fishing town, Bermagui for its yellowfin tuna and marlin.
Australia is becoming the slowest country in the world to act on any important issue. The cruising industry is very profitable for us and not allowing cruise lines to sail their ships from Australia, is costing the country a fortune in lost taxes etc. The airlines are the cause of more COVID-19 cases than cruise lines.
I think it’s ricidulous that they are allowing thousands of fans at football matches but won’t open our cruise industry which supports thousands of jobs Australia wide.
Why if necessary can’t ships go with limited capacity for those who are anxious to go, anything would be better than nothing.
There must be a way out of this debacle!!!
My whole family is very thrustrated with the delay of cruising we cannot understand why Australia is delaying the return we are some of the lucky ones who have escaped the covid battle here in WA why can’t they allow cruising if there are no cases and all passengers are fully vaccinated we can fly go to football matches,cinemas but can’t cruise doesn’t make sense.
Cruising needs to restart in Australia. We need to reopen our international borders so that we can get on with life and live with Covid-19, like other countries are doing.Those of us that are fully vaccinated should be allowed to travel overseas. This can be monitored through our passports.
Only 65,000 out of 25 million?
Maybe there are some reasons why Australia is still closed. Here are some.
The Ruby Princess disaster.
In the end, it does not matter who did or did not do what and who did or did not act legally. Short story is that it exposed weaknesses across the board. Princess could have shown leadership and done the industry a huge favour by questioning the NSW response. It did not. Had it done so, it could have chalked up significant brownie points. Instead . . . well . . . no matter what their legal obligation was /is, we know now we cannot trust them to protect us, even if it is from ourselves! ie we have to look out for ourselves and not trust the cruise industry to do it for us.
Who has been a world leader on control of CV19?
Australia: Deaths 35 per million of population.
Canada: Deaths 695 per million of population. About 20 times more.
USA: Deaths 1,873 per million of population. About 50 time more.
How about vaccination rates?
Australia: about 27% at least one jab.
Canada: about 65% with at least one jab. Well on the way to herd protection.
USA: about 55% with at least one jab.
So we are way behind on vaccinations. Many reasons but that’s where we are.
Australia initially chose Astra. Then 4 weeks between became 12 weeks between jabs. Pfizer remains 4 weeks. Then Astra blood clot issue. Many time more die each year in road crashes than from Astra blood clots! We’ll continue to drive cars but refuse Astra. (Too late for me. One jab down and another this month!) We are switching to Pfizer but have had significant supply issues. We are being told we might reach herd target by Christmas. Given the disaster so far, there is no point in engaging with cruise lines UNTIL we have CERTAINTY re vaccination rates. Still too low and too many variables right now.
Australia only cruises?
We are a nation of car owners used to traveling thousands of Kms / miles in them. Sometimes thousands in 24 hours! We can ‘see Australia’ by car, air or air + hire car. Train and bus not so appealing but we have them too. Don’t need cruises which are restricted to the coastline and miss all the value of daytime travel. Regardless our state borders will keep opening and closing until our vaccination program gets up to speed. Cruise, air, car, train and bus all affected by that.
So:
We are on a par with Japan’s current border policy. Hardly an insignificant nation. The fact they have outbreaks and we do not is irrelevant. Just look at how we both got where we are at and you have your answer.
We are a world leader leader in control of cv19. Just about every country that has moved to open up, even with better vaccination rates, has seen infections skyrocket and had to reimpose lock-downs. Stop-start is not what the cruise industry wants to see.
Our economy is at decade breaking levels. Lower unemployment now than BEFORE cv19. Higher employment than before cv19. We have support for those who are affected. We even have thousands of job vacancies for them. The industry with the most critical shortage of staff? LOL Hospitality! One of the big components of tourism can’t get enough staff. So the short term economic benefits to us from cruising now are hardly worth talking about, especially on a risk / reward basis.
I’ve done 13 cruises in many different location. Alaska, Med, Baltic, Caribbean, Panama Canal, Pacific, etc in some great ships like Regal Princess, Symphony of the Seas and NCL Bliss. Missing overseas travel and cruising. Hope to do more.
But my survival in one of the most livable countries in the world with a booming economy is far more important.
So . . why, right now, do we want to risk cruises?
What are the chances of Princess World Cruise taking place out of Brisbane next May?
We have already had several cruises cancelled.
Since March last year I have had three cruises cancelled and now have had anotherI look one booked for Dec. 2021 cancelled. I have one booked for Feb.- March 2022 booked and if that is cancelled the Federal Govt. need not count of my vote at the next election. The vaccination program has been a disgrace and I deplore those anti-vaccers who are keeping us locked up.
The Ruby Princess in March last year copped all the blame for the infection spreading here but the systems on shore when it returned surely was to blame. As an elderly person cruises are an ideal holiday for me and I’m having to try to keep myself from sliding into depression with nothing to look forward to.
Unfortunately the way the various governments in Australia react , cruising may not get off the ground in Australia before 2024. The WA Government will need zero cases around the world before they consider opening.
The joys of having a PM and many Premiers who aren’t leaders, just marketers and political opportunists.
But we voted them in, so that’s on us.