Cruise industry players are calling for greater and deeper collaboration among private and public sectors to speed up cruise development in Asia.
Speaking at the recent Seatrade Cruise Asia Pacific 2023, panellists say dissimilar visa and immigration procedures remain the major challenge faced by cruise liners in the region.
For example, visa-free access for international cruise travellers to China is only available at the port of Shanghai while in South Korea visa policy rotations, done so to prevent corruption, are disruptive to travel plans.
Panellists urge for standardisation and uniformity in visa and immigration procedures.
Royal Caribbean Group, regional vice president, government relations for Asia, Wendy Yamazaki, contended that such a complete change would probably take years.
“The Schengen visa (equivalent in Asia) would be the more ideal scenario that we can dream of, but in transition period what would be useful is transparency, consistence and predictability, not just across the region, but even within a country,” said Yamazaki, adding that it has been time-consuming to “deal with issues in just one country” due to differing regulations from port to port.
Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, Marine Leisure Tourism Division, deputy director, Hwang In-seong, believes that relevant events will bring about mindset changes and lead to the standardised visa and immigration scenario cruise liners desire.
“Our Asia Jeju Cruise Forum held last July attracted discussions between port of calls and cruise liners in East Asia. We need to think how to promote standardisation and accessible visa and CIQ (customs, immigration and quarantine) policies so that cruise liners can easily come to our region,” Hwang said.
As an unofficial affiliation established to drive tourism and cooperation with cruise destinations a decade ago, the Asia Cruise Cooperation (ACC) believes it can help to take top-level conversations forward to achieve improved visa and immigration procedures.
The ACC comprises six members – Hong Kong, Hainan and Xiamen in Greater China, Taiwan, the Philippines, and South Korea. Its secretariat Kenneth Wong, who is also general manager for MICE & cruise at Hong Kong Tourism Board, said one of ACC’s directions is to have members come together at the government-to-government level, and exert influence on visa decision-makers.
Wong added that the group can also connect with relevant agencies and stakeholders in the Greater Bay Area (GBA) to jointly advance cruise tourism development.
Noting that the GBA is a huge source market and attractive destination for cruising, Wong said: “We see so much possibility in the GBA recently. China Merchants Viking Cruises, for example, recently launched a new cruise itinerary for Shenzhen, Vietnam and Hong Kong. We are happy to receive their very high-end Mainland Chinese clients.”
He sees collaboration possibilities with Hong Kong tourism players too. In the case of China Merchants Viking Cruises, Hong Kong could feature its Wine & Dine Festival in the shore excursion programming so that cruise clients could come ashore for a “total experience”.
Sustainability will be the core focus of discussions among airline leaders gathering at the 67th Assembly of Presidents of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) in Singapore this week.
“Achieving sustainability goals is critical to the future success of the international air transport sector and its continuing role as an agent for social and economic development,” said Subhas Menon, AAPA director general.
“Extreme weather events and record temperatures in 2023 nearing global warming thresholds set by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, are a clarion call for all industry players, especially governments and fuel suppliers, to step up efforts on sustainability, and to ensure that aviation is able to achieve its net zero carbon emissions goal by 2050,” he added.
In addition to aviation sustainability, the AAPA Assembly of Presidents will also celebrate the industry’s return to growth and profitability. AAPA member carriers continue to see strong recovery in air travel despite a dampened global economic climate resulting from unprecedented inflation, and aggressive monetary policies to reign it in. In September 2023, the number of international air passengers in Asia-Pacific reached 79 per cent of 2019 levels, behind other regions given that borders in Asia only fully re-opened six to twelve months after the rest of the world. Nevertheless, demand is robust, with international air passenger traffic measured in revenue passenger kilometres (RPK) growing by 171 per cent in the first nine months of 2023, compared to the same period in 2022.
Seat capacity measured in available seat kilometres increased by a comparatively slower 130 per cent in the first nine months of 2023, in part due to supply chain constraints affecting the timely delivery of new aircraft, and essential spares for maintenance. Load factors have already recovered to pre-pandemic levels and airfares remain high on the back of strong travel demand in the region.
“China, accounting for a fifth of the region’s international traffic before the pandemic, is still at only 54 per cent of 2019 levels in September 2023. Excluding China, recovery of the region stands at a markedly higher 87 per cent. Nevertheless, the return of Chinese travellers in full force will kick off another significant wave of growth for the region and global tourism,” observed Menon, adding that “the demand for air travel is resilient in spite of the challenges in the global economy, as there is a distinct shift in spending from goods to services, including on air travel.”