The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) released on Wednesday strong cruise figures in 2015 at the Seatrade Cruise Global 2016 event in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. To strengthen the city's position as cruise hub of Asia, HKTB announced a new funding for cruise lines to develop a fly-cruise program to Hong Kong.
"Asia will play a pivotal role in the future of the global cruise market. The new cruise funding support, together with the strategic alliance 'Asia Cruise Cooperation,' will take cruise tourism in Hong Kong to new heights," said Mr. Anthony Lau, Executive Director of the HKTB.
In 2015, Hong Kong received over 140 ship calls, a 60% increase over 2013 when the new Kai Tak Cruise Terminal opened. With this world-class infrastructure and the unwavering support of cruise trade partners, passenger travel on destination cruises was particularly strong. Total passenger throughput reached 452,768 in 2015, up almost 140% compared to 2013. Hong Kong has seen major deployments by key cruise lines, including Costa Cruises, Royal Caribbean International and Star Cruises, and in 2016, it will see new deployments or maiden calls from Dream Cruises, MSC and Norwegian Cruise Lines, among others.
Riding on the growing momentum, HKTB announced a new funding to promote fly-cruise with cruise lines in 2016. The purpose of the funding is to foster the development of fly-cruise tourism to Hong Kong with the co-operation of cruise lines to promote fly-cruise products in potential markets. Targeting cruises that are homeporting or with turnaround calls in Hong Kong, the new initiative was designed to assist the promotion of fly-cruise products, including marketing promotions and product development.
To grow Asia's cruise tourism, Hong Kong, together with neighboring Asian destinations including Hainan, the Philippines, Taiwan and Xiamen, formed a committed and resourceful alliance called the "Asia Cruise Cooperation," which aims at maximising the growth of cruise tourism in Asia.
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