2006 has been a record year for Malta’s cruise liner industry, with 394,567 passengers sailing into Grand Harbour, while prospects for 2007 are even brighter.
For next year, VISET, the consortium operating Valletta’s Sea Passenger Terminal, has confirmed bookings of 432,167 passengers, representing a 10 per cent rise over 2006, and the number is still growing.
2006 has been the best year to date for the industry, which has overcome the lapse experienced in 2004 when Malta joined the European Union. An associated tax glitch had led to Malta losing its tax-free status and a number of cruise liners making Valletta one of their ports of call cancelled the Malta leg of their routes. The issue revolves around the fact that for a cruise liner to ply its duty-free goods on board, the ship must have one non-EU port of call on its itinerary and Malta had often been used for the purpose.
As a result of EU membership, 2004 had seen a 30 per cent fall in business, but since then the industry has rebounded, while political wrangling over the issue is ongoing in Brussels and Malta.
VISET general manager Chris Paris commented: “This achievement is significant because, following the loss of Malta’s duty-free status, we have not only managed to arrest the downturn in passenger traffic but we have also set a new record.”
The recovery, he added, has been achieved despite the stiff competition from other Mediterranean ports and has been based on the more sustainable features of the port, such as its impressive
aesthetic qualities.
While confirming that the SuperStar Libra will no longer be running home port activities from Malta next year, Mr Paris said that discussions with a large company were underway with a view to establishing home port activities in 2008, while another big carrier was looking at beginning turnaround activities in Malta.
Looking into early indications of cruise line tourist spending patterns, VISET business development executive Joshua Giordimaina explained that between September 2005 and September 2006, passengers are estimated to have spent an estimated Lm12.80 per capita while ashore, not including pre-booked tours – amounting to a total of Lm3,386,500 for the whole of the year.
In terms of transport from the port, other early indications, drawn up by the Malta Cruise Network, demonstrate that the majority of cruise passengers use coaches, followed by taxis, while those availing themselves of public transport and karrozini were both in the region of three per cent.
While Mr Paris paid heed to the work of the police and the ADT in terms of controlling the transport situation at the port, he added that there are still serious reservations about the taxi service in that it is not regulated by proper taxi meters as at competing ports. And although he pointed out that much of the harassment is now a thing of the past, drivers require more training and the karrozin service needs revamping. Mr Paris explains how the latter are still not covered by any insurance policy and that more effective enforcement and proper job training are required if the service is to be brought up to standard.
According to a survey undertaken by the MCN, 85.5 per cent of cruise passengers said they were interested in returning to Malta in the future, which highlights the important synergies that can be developed between cruise liner tourism and the wider tourism industry.
One of VISET’s main concerns is the ever-growing size of the cruise liners of today and tomorrow, which presents a significant infrastructural challenge that necessitates a review to ensure that the Valletta port will be able to accommodate the new vessel sizes.
Along these lines, in the coming weeks the Malta Maritime Authority is to receive an action plan from private consultants aimed at enhancing Malta’s ports, including Grand Harbour. VISET has given its input to the experts in this respect.
Mr Paris also acknowledged the efforts of the private sector, commenting that many stakeholders had realised the operation’s potential, and he referred to greater cooperation between pilots, mooring men, baggage handlers and others.
“The product is there, we just need to refine it better. No one can deny that our port has a unique setting,” he added. “The Valletta Waterfront is once again alive after so many decades of neglect. The shops and restaurants, and the shops inside the Pinto stores, have certainly contributed to bringing back the glory of the past, especially to the port area.”
The original Lm10 million investment in the Sea Passenger Terminal, Mr Paris added, has now amounted to Lm15 million.
The other aspect of VISET’s operations, the ferry services run by Virtu Ferries and Grimaldi, had increased by 20 per cent over 2005, with 85 per cent of the increase attributable to Virtu Ferries alone.