Heritage Expeditions’ owner Nathan Russ did not hold back in slamming the exorbitant fees cruise lines are facing in New Zealand ports at last week’s NZCA conference, saying the sector which was once done with heart and soul is now about ‘dollars and cents’.
Cruise lines in New Zealand have been fighting a financial battle since C-19, he says, with the latest for Heritage Expeditions being a rise in passenger fees for the New Zealand sub-Antarctic Islands. The Department of Conservation recently raised this from $405pp to a whopping $1056pp for a one-day visit, with two or three landings. He compares these prices to those in South Georgia, where it is $405pp, and this covers 30 days of visitation and 18 different landing locations. There’s also the Macquarie Islands, where fees are $500pp for four landings across a four-day window. “The cost structure in New Zealand is astronomical,” says Russ.
. . . Anchor Fees
Russ points out that to dock at Osaka, it costs Heritage $5500 for a day, while Singapore is just $3000 a day. To drop anchor in Kaikoura, it costs the cruise line $10,500, while the Port of Auckland charges some $30,000. “How as a nation do we want to invite cruise back to New Zealand when our regulations and fee structures are out of control,” says Russ. “Why would big cruise ships want to return back to New Zealand right now when that’s the figures they’re being offered in Asia…I’m deeply concerned.” Russ’ brutal honesty was welcomed by cruise lines, including Princess Cruises’ Matthew Rutherford. “If you can’t get the costs down, the ships won’t come,” says Rutherford. Port of Auckland has responded to Russ, with its Chris Mills saying he appreciates the feedback, and will go back and look at these costs.
. . . The Govt
And while the government is committed to helping the sector with such, Russ says the people who have to implement these changes are not in those meetings. “It takes me 13 government agencies to run one voyage to Antarctica; how do we get those people changing?” he asks. “The ministers can say as much as they like but I don’t think it’s going to get down through the cement layer.”
