You can download the full magazine in high-quality PDF format here.
CRUISE CALLS, INVESTMENT
PRIORITIES AND VALUE FOR
MONEY
Treaty or no treaty, Gibraltar needs to focus on keeping its economy buoyant
so that it can generate the income to fund the Government’s growing liabilities.
As one of the central economic pillars, the local tourism sector will continue to
need sustained investment. This will create jobs and generate reliable returns
for years to come across the economy.
There has been relief that the number of cruise calls to Gibraltar each year
has rebounded somewhat following the COVID pandemic. However, when
compared to the neighbouring ports of Malaga and Cadiz, Gibraltar continues
to lag further and further behind.
The main reason why fewer cruise ships are coming to Gibraltar compared
to other ports is because of the current transport arrangements which cannot
cope with the increase in demand. Cruise ship operators cannot maximise the
sale of shore excursions when their ships call at Gibraltar and they make less
money. Instead they opt to have their ships call at ports which can cope with
the demand, where the shore excursions on offer have been expanded and
where there has been investment in the transport infrastructure to deliver these.
Furthermore the excursions are more varied and interesting for the passengers
and the operators make more money. As a result, so do the ports receiving the
cruise ships.
The range of shore excursions which both of these ports offer has grown
considerably in the last five years. Gibraltar has done very little by comparison
even though it is a popular destination with the passengers who do visit.
The total capacity of buses and taxis is currently around 2,000 passengers which
in itself is not enough to handle the cruise traffic, let alone attending to the
airport, coach terminal, Frontier and still provide a reliable City Service at the
same time.
Many of the ships which call at Gibraltar have over 3,000 passengers on board
plus a further 1,500 crew. The trend over the last ten years is that the size of
vessels is getting larger. Gibraltar will not attract more ships or more passengers
unless the transport infrastructure issue is addressed. Indeed, there is a risk that
the number of calls will decline in the future if this is not addressed.
Both Cadiz and Malaga have invested considerably in cruise facilities and have
expanded the transport infrastructure in the last decade. Cadiz this year will
have almost twice as many cruise calls as Gibraltar. In order to compete we need
to do the same (or better) or we will simply be left behind and the tourists will
stop coming, to the detriment of local businesses and our economy. Gibraltar
may be constrained by its size but there is still a lot that can be done in order to
maximise our potential. We must make it easier and more attractive for operators
and their passengers to visit Gibraltar.
Apart from transporting larger numbers of passengers from the cruise terminal
into town and back again, improvements also need to made on how we move
tourists around town and the Upper Rock. In the past, governments have resisted
any attempt to resolve this, despite having made promises to do so.
Whilst there has been some investment both by businesses in the sector and
by government, it is the strategic issues that need to be tackled head on. The
Government needs to lead the way on this by reorganising and investing in the
transport infrastructure, opening it up and applying free market principles as in
most other business sectors. This needs to form part of the national economic
plan as it will have a positive and lasting impact on the local economy and
improve the lives of all Gibraltarians and visitors alike.