The New England/Canada destination is experiencing a remarkable takeoff in recent years thanks to hard work in advertising and marketing.
Article from CruisesNews magazine
This work has been carried out with itinerary planners, strategic directors, and also with commercial directors to generate demand. The Canadian Atlantic offers a safe and relaxing destination, while each of its ports offers something distinctly different. For example, Charlottetown has Anne of Green Gables, while Saint John has the Bay of Fundy.
Each port is different, and they have worked hard to design itineraries that stand out from other options. All offer nature, active tourism, and history. Exploration cruises, currently the most popular market niche, have one of their havens in Canada.
Canada and New England Cruise Season:
Canada and New England aren't exactly mainstream cruise destinations in Europe, let alone Spain. However, they offer many attractions: a glimpse into American history in Newport and Boston, and in Canada, dramatic cliffs and coastlines in Bar Harbor, charming coastal towns, opulent mansions, and more. Every port on the North Atlantic is a testament to the past, combined with unparalleled natural beauty.
Halifax, Saint John and Sydney are the three largest cruise ports on the Canadian Atlantic coast.
Also fascinating is the lifestyle change along the Canadian Atlantic coast, in Halifax and Saint John, founded by Basque fishermen in the 16th century. These routes are the epitome of active tourism, offering a wealth of opportunities for hiking, mountain biking, or simply walking in national parks, along coastal roads, or through vibrant forests. Activities also include jet skiing in the Bay of Fundy, whale watching, and whitewater rafting.
The Canada/New England cruise season runs from May to October, though the highest number of sailings are concentrated between August and October. The summer months are ideal for family vacations, while autumn is perfect for viewing the changing colors of the forests and the falling leaves, and ships typically sail without children. The best departures for enjoying the fall foliage are those from late September to mid-October. If whale watching is your goal, the best time is from June to early August off the coasts of Newfoundland and Labrador. In the Bay of Fundy, whales can be seen between July and September. On Arctic cruises, seals and polar bears can also be observed off the coast of Prince Edward Island during the summer months.
Another attraction of this destination is its fjords… which aren't only found in Norway and Chile; North America has them too. If your cruise itinerary includes a day sailing on the Saguenay, you'll be able to enjoy the fjord of the same name, located in the heart of Quebec province. It is fed by both the Atlantic Ocean and the St. Lawrence River.
Cruise Offers to Canada and New England:
Almost all cruise lines offer cruises to Canada, although the main source market is North America. In recent years, cruise lines targeting the German market, TUI and Aida, have begun offering this destination. The two cruise giants in Europe, Costa and MSC Cruises, do not currently offer this destination. However, in the fall of 2019, the MSC Meraviglia will become the first ship in the Geneva-based company's fleet to offer cruises to Canada from New York.
Quebec City is the busiest port on the St. Lawrence River. It freezes over in winter and is therefore unnavigable. Last winter it was frozen from December until the end of March.
Cruises to Canada range from ultra-luxury to more mainstream options, though they're not exactly budget-friendly.
Luxury cruise liners like Regent, Seabourn, and Silversea offer stops at boutique ports such as Martha's Vineyard, New London, Nantucket, and Gaspé Peninsula, which are generally not included in the itineraries of larger ships.
Atlantic Canada/New England itineraries are generally 3, 4, and 7-day round trips with a homeport in the northeastern United States, usually New York and Boston. The seven-night cruise typically offers two stops in Canada and two or three stops in New England. This coming fall, Princess is offering several week-long round trips from New York to Canada on the Regal Princess and also on the Royal Princess. NCL is offering ten-day round trips on the Norwegian Gem between August and October. These cruises were popularized by Carnival Cruise Line at the beginning of this century, with four- and five-day itineraries featuring one or two stops in Canadian ports. However, Carnival has since discontinued its Canadian route.
Canada is a destination that is gradually opening up to European shipping companies.
Cruises to the St. Lawrence River are longer voyages, ranging from 7 to 14 days, and are not round-trip itineraries, but rather linear or intermittent cruises. They originate in either Montreal or Quebec City and end in a port in the northeastern United States, such as Boston, New York, or even Baltimore, or vice versa. These cruises offer two or three stops in the province of Quebec, including Montreal or Quebec City, and two or three stops in Canadian Atlantic ports. These cruises typically offer more stops than round-trip itineraries, and are offered, for example, by Holland America Line from Boston to Quebec City. Seabourn also sails between Montreal and Boston, and Princess offers intermittent cruises between New York and Quebec City.
And finally, transatlantic cruises, which take advantage of the end of the Northern European season in September to call at Canadian ports on their return to the Caribbean. The strength of the autumn season in Canada has led to a shortening of the Northern European season for many ships. Thus, in late August or early September, ships like the Regal, Royal Princess, or Zuiderdam cross the Atlantic from Scandinavia to Quebec, New York, and Boston to offer cruises to Canada. Something similar also occurs with some ships sailing from Alaska.
Cruises
will use two of its largest ships, the sister ships Regal and Royal Princess, for Canada/New England cruises departing from New York and Quebec City. The Regal Princess and Royal Princess will sail together for the first time, offering ten departures with four different itineraries and visiting twelve ports. In September and October, the Royal Princess will offer 10- and 11-night round-trip cruises from Quebec City and New York, calling at Newport, Boston, Portland, Saint John, Halifax, Sydney, and Charlottetown. The Regal Princess will offer seven-night round-trip cruises from New York City (Brooklyn Cruise Terminal), visiting Newport, Boston, Bar Harbor, Saint John, and Halifax, also in September and October.
Canada is a seasonal destination, between May and October.
Next year, Princess Cruises will return with its two flagship ships, plus the Caribbean Princess, and will offer its most extensive 2019 cruise program to Canada, including the option to visit Greenland from New York aboard the Caribbean Princess. The season will feature three ships, with ten and six sailings across seven itineraries, offering stops at 16 ports, some of which will be two-day cruises.
The main new addition is the Caribbean Princess's 15-night "Greenland & Canada" round-trip cruise from New York, with three stops in Greenland and three in Canada. There's also a 24-day "Canada & New England" round-trip cruise from Southampton on the Sapphire Princess, which includes a two-day stop in New York and an inaugural stop in Rockland, Maine. The Regal Princess offers more seven-night round-trip cruises than ever before from New York, departing every Saturday from August to New England and Canada, as well as some 10-day voyages between Quebec and New York on the Caribbean Princess, with an overnight stay in Quebec after sailing up the St. Lawrence River and stopping in Boston and Saguenay. The Royal Princess offers four 10/11-night round-trip cruises between New York and Quebec, the last of which is a 14-day voyage ending in Fort Lauderdale.
Holland America Line
is the undisputed leader in cruises to Atlantic Canada. This year, it offers 44 voyages in spring, summer, and fall, departing from five different ports: Boston, Montreal, Quebec City, New York, and Fort Lauderdale. Itineraries range from the popular seven-night cruises departing from Boston or Montreal (offered exclusively by Holland America Line) to a 15-night cruise along the Atlantic coast. Holland America also offers the option of combining a seven-night Bermuda cruise with a seven-night cruise to Canada and New England.
In 2019, Holland America will deploy four ships in the Canadian Atlantic.
This coming season, Holland America will deploy four ships: the smaller sister ships Maasdam and Veendam, the Rotterdam, and the Zuiderdam. Starting in September, the Rotterdam will offer eight seven-night round-trip cruises between Boston and Quebec City. An eighth voyage will begin in Quebec City and end in Tampa. The Zuiderdam will offer the same service, but departing from New York, with all four cruises being nine nights.
The Veendam is Holland America Line's resident ship in this destination. This year, it has been based in the northeastern United States since April, primarily offering round-trip cruises between Boston and Montreal. Its season will extend through October. This year, its sister ship, the Maasdam, will also offer the same product, with fourteen departures between May and August, ensuring that there will be a Holland America Line sailing from Boston and Montreal every week.
In 2019, the Veendam, Zaandam, and Rotterdam from Boston, and the Zuiderdam from New York, will further enhance the leading cruise line's offerings in this destination.
Arctic:
Canada's vast Arctic archipelago comprises more than 36,000 mostly uninhabited islands scattered across the Arctic Ocean west of Greenland. Adventure cruises can follow in the footsteps of the early explorers who sought the Northwest Passage, or even attempt this journey themselves—an experience available to only a privileged few and often compared to a trip to Antarctica 20 years ago. It's a cruise where nature is the main, and almost sole, attraction: majestic glaciers, rugged fjords, and Zodiac excursions for observing seals, walruses, whales, and polar bears. You can also visit Inuit communities in their remote settlements, such as the Natinnak Centre on Pond Inlet, where you can see traditional Inuit carvings and jewelry and meet local artists. This is another major draw for any trip to this part of the world. Other unmissable stops include Auyuittuq National Park on Baffin Island; and Beechey Island, a must-see for lovers of expedition history.
Holland America Line and Princess Cruises dominate the Canada Atlantic market, just as they do in Alaska.
The Northwest Passage cruise is offered by almost all adventure cruise operators: Hapag-Lloyd, Ponant, Silversea Expeditions, etc., between July and August. Cruises through the Canadian Arctic are run by local operators such as Adventure Canada, Chimu Adventures, One Ocean Expeditions, etc. When planning a trip through these waters, keep in mind that the season is very short: only July and August, to avoid problems with ice.
Canada's most important cruise ports are on the Pacific coast, but those on the Atlantic have seen remarkable growth in recent years.
Click on the image to enlarge it.
Quebec City, Canada's Ports : Located where the St. Lawrence River widens as it flows eastward to the sea, Quebec City offers beautiful river views, enhanced by colorful foliage in the fall, when most cruises are scheduled. Founded in 1608, Quebec City is the birthplace of Francophone America. Cruise ships dock in the heart of the Lower Town, on the banks of the St. Lawrence River. The Lower Town is filled with quaint shops, especially on Petit-Champlain, a street redesigned by artists in the 1990s. The Upper Town, perched on a bluff protected by fortifications, is home to notable civic, religious, and military buildings, most notably the majestic Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac hotel, built in 1893 by the Canadian Pacific Company. The two towns are connected by a funicular. Quebec City's cruise season began on May 4, 2018, with the call of Holland America Line's Veendam at the Ross Gaudreault Cruise Terminal. 2018 will be another record-breaking year for the port, following its own record-breaking performance in 2017. Throughout its history, the Port of Quebec has consistently exceeded growth expectations and received high scores in passenger satisfaction surveys. In 2018, eight ships will make their inaugural calls in Quebec: Princess Cruises' Sea Princess and Royal Princess; Royal Caribbean International's Adventure of the Seas; Windstar Cruises' Star Pride; Disney Magic; AIDAVita from AIDA Cruises; and Silversea Cruises' Silver Spirit and Silver Wind.
For the first time, Disney Cruise Line and Windstar Cruises will call at the port. The Disney Magic will include two two-day calls in September, as part of seven-day itineraries that will also include the ports of Saguenay and Baie-Comeau. The Star Pride will call at Quebec City on September 21. The ship will offer a cruise from Montreal with calls at Saguenay, Gaspé, Charlottetown, Halifax, Portland, and a final stop in Boston. Holland America Line is Quebec City's largest customer, with 42 calls from May to October. Princess Cruises' Sea Princess will bring a large number of Australians to Quebec City on its first call in August 2018, and the Royal Princess will offer three sailings of 10 and 11 days, with an overnight stay in Quebec City on each. Finally, three Norwegian Cruise Line ships will call at Quebec City in 2018: the Norwegian Jade, Gem, and Dawn. This year, the busiest day is October 5, with six ships calling. September 29th will be another day to remember with the presence of the Queen Mary 2, Seabourn Quest and Seven Seas Navigator.
The Italian company MSC Cruises enters this destination in 2019 with the MSC Meraviglia.
The Quebec Port Authority is trying to extend the season into the summer. This year they have succeeded with Holland America Line, which has a record 42 scheduled calls, and also with Princess Cruises, which has its first call in August.
They have also commissioned Bermello, Ajamil & Partners to conduct a study on a possible terminal to replace the temporary structure that has to be built annually for that purpose. The construction of this terminal was finalized in August: it will be built at Pier 30, will cost around twenty million dollars, and is expected to be completed in 2020.
Halifax, Nova Scotia
. Halifax is Nova Scotia's most iconic port. It boasts a long maritime tradition (Samuel Cunard was born there) and has been a historic stop for transatlantic voyages in Canada. Today, it's a port steeped in history, located next to the city center, offering a wide array of cultural, historical, and culinary experiences, including a wide selection of seafood and wines. It's home to the Canadian Immigration Museum at Pier 21 and the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, which houses one of the finest Titanic collections, including the only original deck chair. Halifax has another attraction: the record for the most bars and pubs per capita in North America. As a result, pub crawling is one of the most popular excursions on any cruise.
Nearby, there are also many outdoor activities to enjoy in nature, including a visit to the world-famous Peggy's Cove or Lunenburg, a meticulously restored historic village that is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The port of Halifax is featured on nearly all Canada-New England itineraries. Located 593 miles from New York City (386 miles from Boston), a 15-knot cruise ship departing from Manhattan can reach Halifax after just one day at sea.
In 2017, Halifax received 173 cruise ship calls, a 27% increase over the 136 calls recorded in 2016, bringing 292,722 passengers to the city, a 23% increase over the 238,217 in 2016.
Halifax's 2018 cruise season began on April 22 with the arrival of the Fram, a Hurtigruten ship, which docked at Pier 23 in the Halifax Seaport District. Around 200 cruise calls are expected this year, carrying 300,000 passengers, setting a new record for both visits and visitors. There will be ten inaugural calls, beginning with the Norwegian Bliss on April 30, on its transatlantic voyage after its delivery. The Disney Magic will make three calls in September and October, and the Queen Mary 2 will call in October. October 9, 2018, will be the busiest day, with five simultaneous calls and more than 11,000 passengers.
Brook
welcomed 13,186 passengers and 6,901 crew members, arriving on ships such as the Seven Seas Mariner, Seven Seas Navigator, Vision of the Seas, and Artania. This year, the port expects 15,500 passengers and fifteen cruise ship calls. The AIDAvita, Arcadia, and Crystal Symphony will be docking for the first time. Corner Brook will also welcome back the Queen Mary 2, returning for the first time since 2006. A small building will also open this year on the pier to enhance port services and welcome activities, including a market and a passenger welcome center. This center will house the volunteers who provide information to passengers using the free shuttle buses that run from the port to downtown on cruise days. Corner Brook fits perfectly into a 10- or 14-day itinerary between Canada and New England. Another area of growth is ships offering transatlantic cruises from Iceland and Greenland, as well as the emerging expedition cruise market, with itineraries that include circumnavigating Newfoundland or stopping along the coast of Labrador.
Saint John
, located north of the Bay of Fundy, is the easternmost city in North America and the second-largest city on Atlantic Canada, after Halifax, Nova Scotia. Due to its strategic location, Saint John has been vitally important for centuries to explorers, adventurers, traders, and all kinds of seafarers. Today, many cruise lines include Saint John in their itineraries, both as a homeport and as a port of call on voyages to Newfoundland, Labrador, and northern Canada. Saint John is also a port of call for transatlantic cruises. It is located 537 miles from New York City and only 290 miles from Boston. One of its attractions is that it has some of the largest tidal ranges in the world.
The Canadian Arctic is one of the most up-and-coming exploration cruise destinations.
Cruise ship activity in Saint John began more than thirty years ago, with 550 passengers. This year, the season runs from May 1 to November 2 and includes 75 ship calls, bringing approximately 176,000 passengers and 70,000 crew members to the city. This represents a 19% increase in passengers over 2017 (144,000) and a 13% improvement in cruise ship calls (66 in 2017).
This marks the fourth consecutive year of growth, which is expected to continue in 2018. This is despite Royal Caribbean, which in 2016 brought the Vision on the Seas and the Anthem of the Seas (the largest ship ever to dock in Saint John), having no scheduled calls this year. Cruise activity in Saint John represents an annual injection of $50 million into its economy, including the creation of nearly 300 direct jobs in New Brunswick. By 2020, the Port of Saint John expects to reach 200,000 passengers, and the port's Strategic Plan projects 300,000 within ten years.
Sydney
, one of Nova Scotia's most visited ports, is a city with a rich industrial and mining history, located 807 nautical miles from New York and 600 miles from Boston. In 2017, it welcomed over 132,000 passengers, prompting the Cape Breton Island Regional Government, in collaboration with the Port of Sydney Authority, to commission CBCL to design and build a second cruise ship pier at the Sydney Marine Terminal, a project valued at $20 million. This second pier will be capable of accommodating ships the size of the Queen Mary 2, with a draft of 11.5 meters. It will be located just north of the existing pier and, upon completion, will allow for the simultaneous berthing of three ships.
Following the industrial restructuring that took place at the beginning of the 21st century, investments in cruise ship infrastructure are considered strategic by the Regional Government. The design incorporates the requirements of cruise ship owners regarding minimum draft, fingers, access channels, fenders, and the capacity of bollards and mooring posts, as well as all aspects of land-based infrastructure, such as parking, sidewalks, coach access, etc.
Cape Breton Island is a must-see destination on any itinerary to Canada/New England. Among its attractions are its Mining Museum, the Alexander Graham Bell Museum, and Fort Louisbourg, built in 1744. The latter underwent the most extensive reconstruction of a historic monument in North America.
Charlottetown
, on Prince Edward Island, saw a 42% increase in visitors in 2017, reaching 36,000 passengers and crew members in just the first three months. This represents approximately ten million dollars in direct and indirect economic impact for the island. By the end of the season, Charlottetown had welcomed 156,000 passengers and crew members. The Disney Magic made its inaugural call there on October 24th of last year.
The strength of the autumn season in Canada has led to a shortening of the season in other destinations, such as northern Europe or even Alaska.
Charlottetown is famous as "the city of churches and trees," with a historic downtown filled with quaint shops and fine examples of Victorian architecture.
For 2018, Charlottetown expects 91 cruise ship calls, six of them inaugural, bringing a total of 115,178 passengers and 50,478 crew members. The season opened with the Veendam on May 2nd and will close with the Silver Wind on November 4th, 2018. Among the larger ships are the Adventure of the Seas, which will make four calls in the fall, the Royal Princess, and the Norwegian Gem, also with four calls.
The cruise line that will call most frequently in Charlottetown will, unsurprisingly, be Holland America, with forty-two calls by four ships, representing almost half of all port calls. Luxury ships also have a significant share, with twelve calls by Seabourn, Silversea, and Windstar.
Charlottetown has eighteen anchorage calls scheduled for this year. To mitigate this, it is undertaking a dock expansion project, which began last June and is expected to be completed by autumn 2019. The expansion project, which involves installing four additional dolphins, will be carried out using pilings and will extend the existing berth by 270 meters, allowing the port to accommodate two ships of up to 330 meters in length simultaneously.
Montreal:
For decades, the Port of Montreal has been carrying out one of the most important port-city integration projects. Montreal's Grand Quay is now a witness to the city's history, serving both public and urban purposes, as well as being Canada's most modern cruise terminal.
It is built on the Alexandra Pier, which itself was erected over a century ago, at the beginning of the 20th century. At that time, Montreal was the world's largest grain port.
In the 1960s, cruise ships began calling at Montreal. To serve them in the best possible conditions, the Montreal Port Authority decided to build a passenger terminal on the Alexandra Pier, which was completed in time for the 1967 World's Fair and named the Iberville Passenger Terminal.
At the beginning of this century, there was a boom in cruise ship arrivals, increasing from 51,000 in 2006 to the current 114,000, which necessitated the modernization of the terminal.
The reconstruction project for Alexandra Pier and the Iberville Passenger Terminal began in November 2015, based on a design by architect Provencher Roy. The first phase was the cruise terminal, which received its first call, the Maasdam, on June 10, 2017. It was scheduled to open in May, but a construction strike caused a delay. The public portion of the project, known as Montreal's Grand Quay, opened on June 3, 2018. An observation tower remains to be completed and is expected to open in 2021.
Montreal has gone from being a port dedicated almost exclusively to bulk cargo, to having a large presence of cruise ships.
2017 was a record-breaking year for Montreal, due in part to the cruise ships that arrived to celebrate Canada's 150th anniversary and Montreal's 375th anniversary. More than 50 cruise ships docked in Montreal last year, carrying over 114,000 passengers, a 33% increase compared to 2016 and a 140% increase compared to 2011. For 2018, the port expects a 14% increase, with 130,000 passengers expected.
A total of 82 calls are scheduled, with Holland America once again being the port's largest user, with 18 calls. Most of the ships belong to the upper premium (Oceania, Viking, etc.) and luxury (Seaburn and Silversea) segments.
Boston
, Massachusetts, is a living history of the United States. This city offers a wide array of museums, galleries, parks, and historical sites. Among them are the famous 2.5-mile Freedom Trail, which includes the Paul Revere Walk, and the restored tea boats at the Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum. It's also a city where you'll find boutiques, cafes, and excellent restaurants.
In 2017, Boston's cruise activity grew by 31%, with 151 calls, primarily to two major destinations: Bermuda and Canada. 163 calls are planned for 2018. Until 2017, Norwegian Cruise Line was Boston's main homeport client; however, this year it has passed the torch to Holland America Line, which, with 34 calls (up from 28 in 2017), has surpassed NCL (31 calls). The reason for this growth is the improved air connections at its international airport, with more international flights and more low-cost domestic flights. This trend continues to grow, making Boston the ideal homeport for a Canadian cruise, as it is 378 miles closer to Canada than New York, its main rival. This allows for longer stays in port or slower cruising speeds, for the same cruise duration.
In 2017, the port received 36 ships from 19 different cruise lines, including European vessels such as the Mein Schiff 6, which made TUI's first call in Boston. It also had five overnight calls, up from three in 2016. Boston is also a stop for longer cruises from New York.
In 2018, New York offered 38 cruises to Canada, compared to 29 from Boston. However, New York's offerings are much more seasonal, concentrated in the fall, while Boston's offerings are marketed from spring onwards.
Newport and Bar Harbor:
Other stops in the United States en route to Canada include Newport, Rhode Island, and Bar Harbor, Maine. Newport was once the summer retreat for New York's most famous and wealthy residents, who stayed in their opulent mansions. These mansions can now be visited on optional tours, such as The Breakers, Cornelius Vanderbilt II's Italian Renaissance-style palace, which features a loggia with a dolphin mosaic made from thousands of marble pieces. Also popular is the Cliff Walk, a scenic 3.5-mile trail along the rocky coastline offering stunning views of many of Newport's mansions.
Bar Harbor was the first North American port to limit cruise ship calls.
In 2018, 58 cruise ship calls are scheduled. These ships must anchor in the harbor and arrive by tender at the Perotti Park pier, while smaller vessels dock at the South Alofsin Pier in Fort Adams State Park.
Bar Harbor, Maine, boasts Acadia National Park as its main attraction, a blend of towering cliffs and forested mountains. President Woodrow Wilson established Acadia as the first national park east of the Mississippi. This year, 174 cruise ship calls will take place between April 19, with the arrival of the Fram, and November 7, when Oceania Cruises' Insignia closes the season. This year will feature five inaugural calls: Hebridean Sky, Adventure of the Seas, AIDAvita, Star Pride, and Silver Wind.
Bar Harbor was one of the first ports in the world to consider the sustainability of cruise ships. It limited cruise passenger arrivals to 3,500 during the off-season, which could be increased to 5,500 during the peak fall season. And in June 2017, it put a vote among its residents on whether to convert a former ferry pier into a cruise terminal to prevent ships from continuing to anchor. Demonstrating pragmatism, the 5,535 residents of Bar Harbor, which receives more than three million visitors annually, including over 170,000 cruise passengers, voted in favor. This clearly shows that a cruise destination can be sustainable and generate wealth for the community simultaneously.
Rockland, another port in Maine, has also limited calls by ships with more than 500 passengers. It will only admit six megaships per year, in September and October, with a daily limit of 3,000 passengers and a monthly limit of 9,000.
Canada in numbers:
In 2016, approximately 1,200 cruise ship calls were made at Canadian ports, with over 2.23 million passenger arrivals. Of these, 60% were in transit and the remaining 40% were homeport passengers, primarily those traveling to Alaska.
– The ports of British Columbia (Nanaimo, Prince Rupert, Victoria and Vancouver) accounted for 63% of these passenger arrivals (1,400,000 entries), all related to the Alaska destination (see CruisesNews number 44).
Canada's Atlantic ports, led by Halifax, accounted for 26% of cruise passenger arrivals in 2016 (approximately 574,500 passengers). These ports are the primary destinations for Canada/New England cruises originating in the northeastern United States, as well as expedition cruises and transatlantic voyages.
Halifax is Canada's most important Atlantic cruise port.
– Finally, the ports of St. Lawrence, including Montreal, Saguenay, Quebec and some smaller ones, account for the remaining 11% of cruise passengers arriving in Canada (around 252,000 passengers).
Vancouver is Canada's largest cruise port, handling over 826,000 passengers (37%), almost all of whom were homeport passengers. Victoria is the second largest, a pure transit port, serving 557,000 cruise passengers.
Halifax, Saint John, and Sydney are the three largest cruise ports on Canada's Atlantic coast, all transit ports. Combined, they handled over 464,000 passengers (81% of all cruise passengers in Canada). Halifax accounted for 11% of all cruise passengers calling in Canada; Saint John contributed 6%; and Sydney accounted for the remaining 4%, with over 80,000 transit cruise passenger arrivals.
Quebec is the busiest port on the St. Lawrence River, with nearly 110,000 passenger arrivals (5% of Canada's total) in 2016. The Port of Quebec is both a home port and a transit port, accounting for 30/70% respectively.
Quebec will build a new cruise terminal that will be completed in 2020.
Montreal contributed an additional 70,600 passengers, 96% of whom begin or end their cruise at that port. Together, these two ports account for 71% of cruise passenger arrivals to the Province of Quebec.
In 2018, the nine ports of the Cruise the Saint Lawrence Association received 387,678 passengers in 2017, and a 30% increase is expected for 2018. Twenty-six cruise lines will send thirty-five ships to this destination, with a direct and indirect economic impact of over five hundred million dollars.
The remaining ports account for 9% of cruise passenger arrivals, with Charlottetown, Saguenay, and St. John's being the most prominent.
Montreal, an Eco-Friendly Port.
One of the most important aspects of Montreal's new Grand Quay terminal project was an $11 million shore power connection capable of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 2,800 tons per year. This infrastructure consists of a 25-kilovolt power line that feeds a new substation installed at the cruise terminal in 2016. Schneider Electric designed and built all the necessary equipment and installed it in the substation. After the work was completed, on July 29, 2017, Holland America Line's Veendam connected to the shore power connection for the first time, allowing it to shut down all its engines while docked. This project was funded with $5 million from the federal government's Shore Power Technology for Ports program, while the Government of Quebec contributed an additional $3 million from its own program called PETMAF. The Port Authority invested the remaining $3 million.
The Canadian federal government's Shore Power Technology for Ports Program (SPTP) is part of its efforts to reduce pollution and greenhouse gas emissions in Canada. The program aims to reduce pollution from ships docked in port by allowing them to shut down their generators and connect to shore power. The SPTP program subsidizes 50% of the necessary investment and is one of the Canadian government's tools to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 17% below 2005 levels by 2020. In addition to Montreal, Halifax and Vancouver have also built similar facilities under the SPTP program.
