Let’s talk about cruises

The Cruise Dialogue congress which took place from 19 to 21 of February 2020, gathered global experts in Cartagena de Indias (Colombia), to discuss the positive and negative impacts this activity causes in port cities. Diverging opinions showed the different perception of the challenges, but it is clear that better cooperation between ports and cities worldwide is needed. AIVP supported the event with the presentations of our own experts and members. An international conference on "Cruise, Ports and Cities" The International Association of Maritime Economists in cooperation with University of Los Andes and other private and public actors organized the first Cruise Dialogue. The event, coordinated by Professors Thanos Pallis and Gordon Wilsmeier brought together academic and industry experts from all around the world to debate the consequences of this activity for port cities. The mix between representatives of academia, port authorities, cities and sector companies showed the divergent opinions and different sense of urgency to tackle challenges like mass tourism or balance between industry demands and return of investment of port cities. The host, Port of Cartagena, is one the main cruise port of Colombia in the highly competitive market of the Caribbean. AIVP gives hints to find the right balance between cruises and their externalities The issue of cruises in port cities is increasingly gathering attention and the balance between negative and positive externalities is currently questioned. While cruises are indeed an opportunity to bring citizens closer to the port and the water, some port and urban managers and academics argue that the business model from leading companies does not provide enough benefits to compensate the negative effects, such as pollution, traffic congestion or massification of city centers. Hence, a dialogue between all relevant actors is indeed necessary to find some middle ground. While private company representatives defended the benefits cruises provide to hosting cities, emphasizing the positive economic impact, other focused on the negative issues…