‘It’s Wonderful’: Port Welcomes Lifting Of Cruise Ship Ban

News that Canada’s cruise ship ban will be lifted later this year is being welcomed by port authorities across the country.

Transport Minister Omar Alghabra announced Thursday that cruise ships will once again be allowed in Canadian waters as of Nov. 1.

Andrew Dixon, senior vice-president of trade and business development at Port Saint John, said he was delighted by the news.

“It’s wonderful that it’s come out at this time so far ahead of the date to allow for planning,” Dixon said in an interview on Friday.

But do not expect to see an influx of cruise ships in Canadian waters as soon as the ban is lifted in November.

For Port Saint John, Dixon said it will be a few more months before any vessels drop anchor in the harbour.

“This is all about the cruise season 2022,” Dixon said.

Port Saint John currently has around 70 cruise ships scheduled for next year with a capacity of 188,000 passengers, he said.

In 2019, the last year of sailings before the pandemic, Saint John saw 79 cruise calls and 196,000 passengers.

Dixon anticipates most of the bookings will come to fruition but says how full the ships will be remains a wildcard at this point.

“Is that going to be 90 per cent? Is it going to be 70 or 80?” he said. “Depends on their success in sales and it depends on what takes place between now and that date.”

Now that the 2022 season is a reality, Dixon said they will be having conversations with the various cruise lines over the coming months to firm up the bookings.

Port Saint John will now spend the next few months getting the terminals ready and getting the people in place for the cruise season.

Dixon said port authorities are working with Transport Canada on what post-COVID protocols will look like. Transport Canada has said that cruise ships will still need to follow public health guidelines.

“That will need to be refined and concluded what will happen, what needs to happen, and make sure that everybody is comfortable, safe and secure with the resumption of cruise,” he said.

“We’ve got lots of time to go through that process, see how the vaccination program rolls out, see what takes place with respect to hopefully the end of the pandemic and then take the necessary moves and precautions and operational procedures to get back in business.”