Port of Halifax expects the cruise industry to have a slow return

The Halifax Port Authority expects it will be years before cruise ship passengers flood the waterfront again. 

The future of the port was discussed Tuesday afternoon when the standing committee on natural resources and economic development met at Province House. 

The president and CEO of the Halifax Port Authority, Captain Allan Gray, told the committee that last year 179 vessels docked in Halifax. He says more than 200 were expected this year, but the pandemic arrived before they did. 

“Cruise has been the biggest challenge,” he says. “While it's a significant impact on the port, we are aware of the broader impact on the economy in Nova Scotia and Atlantic Canada, and we are doing what we can to work with partners to get the return of cruise.”

He says it will be a slow build. 

“We don't expect to see an instant return next year, it will be a slow return and will take two or three years before we can get back to the numbers we saw in 2019,” he says. 

Gray adds when cruise ships once again sail into the harbour, the passenger experience will be different.

“At the moment we are seeing through Europe, Asia, and Italy, that it is restricted tour operations, so it's not free walking off the vessel,” he says. “In the early stages of the return to cruise, I don't think you will see the same busy waterfront environment.”

Gray says the industry is looking to resume, but he understands there is a lot of nervousness surrounding the idea. 

“It's two-fold, one is the community nervousness about bringing cruise into their community, but also from the cruise lines it is about having a safe destination to go to,” he says. “One of the fortunate things I think we have in Atlantic Canada is we have an appealing destination, a friendly destination, and a safe destination which has been shown with the low number of COVID events.”

Gray says both the provincial governments and federal government will need to be aligned in their positions on the return to cruise.