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»	Cruise Talk » Cruise Lines » Port of Vancouver loses more (Page 1)

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Author

Topic: Port of Vancouver loses more

kaiser
First Class Passenger
Member # 3370

posted 04-12-2004 08:19 PM

With the Amsterdam, Oosterdam, Diamond Princess, Sapphire Princess, Regal Princess, Norwegian Spirit, and Norwegian Star all based in either Seattle or San Francisco (and without regular ports of call in Vancouver) our city's cruise industry is set to decline for a second year in a row (after about 20 years of continuous growth).

And to make things worse I've just learned that Celebrity Cruises will move the Mercury to Seattle as well ... though she will at least visit Vancouver a few times as a port of call. I have a feeling that this was announced a while ago and I somehow missed it but it still annoys the heck out of me.

I know I'm greedy but Seattle, as great of a city it is, is an awful place to photograph cruise ships - unless one rents a boat and risks getting shot at by the coast guard .

Anyways, all kidding aside, besides me getting ripped off with photographic opportunities, I think the passengers are also getting ripped off with short stays in Victoria, late in the evenings... arriving at 8PM and leaving at midnight ... what's with that?!!?

Also, due to the Norwegian Star's difficulties her first of two visits to Vancouver has been cancelled. Now I have to wait until September to see her! The nerve!!

Unhappy regards, Kaiser

Posts: 212 | From: Vancouver, B.C. | Registered: Sep 2002 | IP: Logged

lasuvidaboy
First Class Passenger
Member # 4527

posted 04-12-2004 09:53 PM

One of the best parts of our Alaskan cruise was the day and a half we spent in Vancouver. We loved the city and it's wonderful restaurants, sights etc.. We since have returned for a couple of long weekends because of it's great International feel. Why are the cruise lines heading south to Seattle??

Posts: 7654 | From: Hollywood Hills/L.A. | Registered: Mar 2004 | IP: Logged

Waynaro
First Class Passenger
Member # 3484

posted 04-12-2004 10:28 PM

Thanks for the info Kaiser. Now I am curious to know whether Seattle can take in all the load at the same time and what is the benefit of putting ships in Seattle when there Port of Seattle is getting more and more crowder while Port of Vancouver is getting more emptier...I don't like it at all.....

Posts: 6108 | From: Vallejo,CA : California Maritime Academy!!! | Registered: Nov 2002 | IP: Logged

gpcruisedude
First Class Passenger
Member # 3533

posted 04-12-2004 11:29 PM

Cruise Lines are really missing the boat by not basing in Vancouver!! As it is cheaper economically to buy Canadian as all Cruise Lines deal in U.S. dollars, so with the U.S. dollar worth so much in Canada, of course it would make economic sense to purchase supplies in Vancouver while on turn around!

Also Vancouver is the LEADING West Coast port for shipping! And their Cruise Ship facilities are top notch! As are the City Tours and everything is in walking distance to the cruise pier! Canada Place is the BEST cruise terminal on the West Coast that is undisputed!

But I guess Victoria,BC will benefit from all the cruise ships that are basing in Seattle as 95% will have to call in Victoria,BC ! Which itself is also a beautiful city for the cruising public, but its gain is Vancouver's loss!

Posts: 865 | From: Grande Prairie,Alberta | Registered: Dec 2002 | IP: Logged

lasuvidaboy
First Class Passenger
Member # 4527

posted 04-13-2004 04:30 PM

I thought the port of Los Angeles/Long Beach was the leading West coast port in terms of freight and Vancouver was the leader in terms of passengers boarded (because of the Alaskan cruises).

Posts: 7654 | From: Hollywood Hills/L.A. | Registered: Mar 2004 | IP: Logged

gpcruisedude
First Class Passenger
Member # 3533

posted 04-13-2004 07:34 PM

I meant Vancouver is the Best port in terms of Cruises, its a remarkable pier and a wonderful City. LA doesn't even compare as their cruise pier is far from downtown L.A. and their pier is not very inviting, not as much as Vancouver's!

Lebelty have you ever seen or been to The Canada Place Cruise Terminal in Vancouver? It was built as Canada's Pavillion and a legacy to Canada for The 1986 World Exposition in Vancouver and has Sails on the top of it which are lit up every night! It is RIGHT DOWNTOWN and you could throw a stone at the heart of downtown from their! Also on Canada Place is one of Vancouver's top Hotels(over 300 rooms) the Hotel and a huge convention centre, plus one of the most inviting cruise terminals you have ever seen!

What other pier has a five star hotel on it and a place where cruise passengers can actually watch the ships arrive and depart from their hotel room??

And Vancouver has one of the most interesting harbours to cruise in/out of than any other West Coast port, especially at night!!

Posts: 865 | From: Grande Prairie,Alberta | Registered: Dec 2002 | IP: Logged

gpcruisedude
First Class Passenger
Member # 3533

posted 04-13-2004 07:35 PM

oops sorry Lebelty ignore that in my post!!

Posts: 865 | From: Grande Prairie,Alberta | Registered: Dec 2002 | IP: Logged

ttbryson
Just Boarded
Member # 4367

posted 04-13-2004 08:55 PM

I had refrence books refering to these but can't find them... must be in storage. Anyway, I'm pretty sure that Vancouver is #1 on the west coast for cruise passengers AND freight. ONe thing I am sure of is Vancouver is FIRST in Canada (9,800,000) gross tonnes shipped and the second biggest city in canada is Halifax, NS I think with about 1,900,000 gross tonnes... not other Canadian City comes close, by a large margin. My numbers may not be accurate as it is from memory but the approximate ratios are correct (shipping numbers) Just as a sidenote... the Roberts Bank coal/container port is the biggest one in Canada and the SECOND biggest in the world, second only to a japanese terminal.

EXERT from Encarta:
"Vancouver is Canada’s leading port and one of the busiest in North America, with such cargo as coal, potash, metals, and other materials from western Canada. Vancouver’s leading trading partners for seaborne commerce include Japan, South Korea, China, Brazil, the United States, and Taiwan."..."Tourism is also important, and cruise ships moor at the city’s waterfront."

Anyway, from memory, Vancouver is the biggest port on the West Coast; for both cruise passengers and freight. If not, it surely is the most beautiful!

Posts: 5 | From: Vancouver, BC | Registered: Jan 2004 | IP: Logged

Globaliser
First Class Passenger
Member # 4153

posted 04-13-2004 08:57 PM

quote:
Originally posted by gpcruisedude:
What other pier has a five star hotel on it and a place where cruise passengers can actually watch the ships arrive and depart from their hotel room??

Almost, but not quite, the same is the Ocean Terminal in Hong Kong.

I stayed in that hotel in Vancouver for a three-night stay before a cruise to Alaska. It was a great idea - until we discovered that our ship left from the other pier.

However, we did watch the docking of the ship that was carrying two friends, with whom we were going to have lunch as they'd wangled themselves a turnaround day off for that very purpose.

Posts: 1869 | From: UK | Registered: Sep 2003 | IP: Logged

CGT
First Class Passenger
Member # 3531

posted 04-13-2004 09:00 PM

quote:
Originally posted by ttbryson:
I'm pretty sure that Vancouver is #1 on the west coast for cruise passengers AND freight.

L.A./Long Beach is the west coast of North America's busiest port.

Posts: 2760 | From: New York, New York, USA | Registered: Dec 2002 | IP: Logged

lasuvidaboy
First Class Passenger
Member # 4527

posted 04-13-2004 09:27 PM

I agree that the port in Vancouver is beautiful and the Canada Place pier is far superior to ours. All we have is the best weather in North America!

Posts: 7654 | From: Hollywood Hills/L.A. | Registered: Mar 2004 | IP: Logged

Grant
First Class Passenger
Member # 1000

posted 04-13-2004 11:56 PM

While Vancouver is not the busiest in terms of vessel movements, passengers handled, nor in containers trans-shipped, the port is the largest port in North America in terms of the tonnage of cargo shipped. This statistic reflects the large volumes of grain, minerals (coal, potash, sulpher, copper to name a few), petroleum, water, forest products, machinery and automobiles the port handles.

Posts: 834 | From: Victoria, BC, Canada | Registered: Jan 2000 | IP: Logged

Grant
First Class Passenger
Member # 1000

posted 04-14-2004 12:00 AM

I forgot to say that the major impediment to cruise ship operations, is the lack of airline "lift" available at YVR. The international gates just can't handle more aircraft in the morning hours than presently use the facility; all the gates are occupied between 09:00 and 13:00. As a result, cruise lines are faced with busing thousand of passengers to and from Seattle, and along with new tighter border crossing procedures, this is just becoming an unworkable situation.

Posts: 834 | From: Victoria, BC, Canada | Registered: Jan 2000 | IP: Logged

gpcruisedude
First Class Passenger
Member # 3533

posted 04-14-2004 12:28 AM

Grant, I wonder why the Cruise Lines dont use Abbotsford for flights, especially Charters. Better than having it all on Van??

Posts: 865 | From: Grande Prairie,Alberta | Registered: Dec 2002 | IP: Logged

lasuvidaboy
First Class Passenger
Member # 4527

posted 04-14-2004 04:00 PM

Sea Tac is a huge gateway airport and I guess it makes sense to keep the passengers coming there from the rest of the U.S.. United, the biggest West Coast airline (and the world's second largest) can bring passengers up from their hubs at LAX, DEN and SFO with no immigration delays before the cruises. San Fran of course is the next logical option with it's lovely harbor and the option of terrific pre or post cruise layovers. SFO is also a major west coast hub for US flights as well as a gateway for International cruise passengers.

Posts: 7654 | From: Hollywood Hills/L.A. | Registered: Mar 2004 | IP: Logged

Grant
First Class Passenger
Member # 1000

posted 04-14-2004 10:26 PM

Abbostford is a very poor airport; facitlities are barely adequate even for second rate carriers, certainly not up to the standards that today's cruise ship passenger expect and demand. I don't think there are customs facilities either.

Posts: 834 | From: Victoria, BC, Canada | Registered: Jan 2000 | IP: Logged

Ocean Liners
First Class Passenger
Member # 4013

posted 04-15-2004 01:59 AM

The busiest day in the port of Vancouver from 2002-2004 Cruise Calendar.

Aug.31 2002

Sea Princess
Zaandam
Star Princess

Radiance of the Seas
Spirit of Oceanus(TBA)
Universe Explorer

Aug. 22 2003

Infinity
Crystal Harmony
Ryndam
Pacific Princess

Legend Of the Seas

Sep. 19 2004

NORWEGIAN SUN
STATENDAM
VEENDAM

SERENADE OF THE SEAS
INFINITY

NORWEGIAN STAR (TERMINAL TBA)

*Legend
1. Text in bold indicates ships docked at Canada Place.
2. Text in italics indicates ships docked at Ballantyne.

[ 04-15-2004: Message edited by: Ocean Liners ]

Posts: 4502 | From: Japan | Registered: Jul 2003 | IP: Logged

Ocean Liners
First Class Passenger
Member # 4013

posted 04-16-2004 12:07 AM

quote:
Originally posted by gpcruisedude:

What other pier has a five star hotel on it and a place where cruise passengers can actually watch the ships arrive and depart from their hotel room??

Hilton Auckland is located on Prince's Wharf(Overseas Passenger Terminal) right on Auckland's waterfront, overlooking the harbour.

Posts: 4502 | From: Japan | Registered: Jul 2003 | IP: Logged

gpcruisedude
First Class Passenger
Member # 3533

posted 04-16-2004 08:19 PM

Does Auckland even compare to Vancouver, I have never been their, but read alot about Auckland, and I dont see where they could even COMPARE to Vancouver's terminal or the City itself. But as I said, never been to Auckland !

Posts: 865 | From: Grande Prairie,Alberta | Registered: Dec 2002 | IP: Logged

gpcruisedude
First Class Passenger
Member # 3533

posted 04-16-2004 08:26 PM

One thing I'm really surprised at is why Victoria has not tried to get ships to stay longer?? An ideal situation is for a cruise to depart at say 11pm and sail to Victoria docking at say 6am and stay until 5 or 6 pm.

What an idea, I wonder why alomost EVERY cruise ship in the industry arrives in the morning and departs between 4-6pm? What's wrong with arriving at say 11am and departing at 10 or 11 pm.

Well just a thought!

Posts: 865 | From: Grande Prairie,Alberta | Registered: Dec 2002 | IP: Logged

lasuvidaboy
First Class Passenger
Member # 4527

posted 04-16-2004 08:28 PM

Auckland is beautiful (like a smaller Sydney only cleaner-in my opinion) The city does not host nearly as many cruise ships as Vancouver and has a fraction of the cargo activity Vancouver. New Zealand is a much smaller country with a population to match and you could not really compare it to the port of Vancouver at all. Vancouver is Canada's Western gateway to Asia and the US for imports and exports. It is like comparing apples to oranges. Both cities have their charm and BOTH are really beautiful places to visit.

Posts: 7654 | From: Hollywood Hills/L.A. | Registered: Mar 2004 | IP: Logged

Ocean Liners
First Class Passenger
Member # 4013

posted 04-16-2004 08:54 PM

gpcruisedude,

If you visit a link Hilton Auckland

You may find photo and more facts.

Posts: 4502 | From: Japan | Registered: Jul 2003 | IP: Logged

chrisrotlmacin
First Class Passenger
Member # 4531

posted 04-17-2004 12:37 AM

Norwegian Sun will be the only ship of NCL to have as port of call Vancouver from 05/02/04 till 09/26/04 . No complains but Seattle is better for crew as port of call .

[ 04-17-2004: Message edited by: chrisrotlmacin ]

Posts: 233 | From: Romania ,the home country of Dracula and with the best cruise crew in the world | Registered: Mar 2004 | IP: Logged

Grant
First Class Passenger
Member # 1000

posted 04-17-2004 01:38 AM

Hey, I think I am very fortunate to live where I do; Victoria is a wonderful city. But, I must say that Auckland is so nice, that if I could not live where I do, I would choose there or Adelaide as my next choices. I have seen alot of the world, and believe me, Auckland takes second place to almost no where!

Posts: 834 | From: Victoria, BC, Canada | Registered: Jan 2000 | IP: Logged

bmajor
First Class Passenger
Member # 1754

posted 04-17-2004 02:08 AM

Here is a pic of Star Princess in Auckland

[ 04-17-2004: Message edited by: bmajor ]

Posts: 1371 | From: Orewa.New Zealand. | Registered: Jan 2001 | IP: Logged

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