Asia's cruise industry is getting a lot of attention as new ships come into the market to capitalize on a booming tourism trend. However, there's another destination experiencing a growth in cruise passengers - New Zealand.
According to Scoop, more than 254,000 passengers and 92,000 crew visited the country during the August 2015 to June 2016 cruise passenger. Cruising in New Zealand is becoming quite popular.
"This represents a phenomenal growth of 26 percent in terms of passenger arrivals which translates to an injection of $484 million into New Zealand's economy," Kevin O'Sullivan, Cruise New Zealand's outgoing chair, told Scoop.
The country welcomed nine new ships during the last cruise season and will welcome even more in the coming one.
"The 2016-2017 cruise season will start again at the end of this month. We expect to welcome 11 ships new to New Zealand, and another three new ships are scheduled for the following season," said O'Sullivan.
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It is projected in New Zealand's Tourism 2025 plan that the cruise sector will be worth a reported $490 million according to O'Sullivan.
For more on the importance of cruising to New Zealand's tourism economy, go here.
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