The cruise sector does not know any crisis and is booming. Passengers are increasing, linked activities are raising, future perspectives smile and Venice port is destined to become the first homeport in Europe, as well as the 11th in the world, before New York and Los Angeles. VTP, well-motivated, is expanding, winning the concession of the new terminal in Ravenna, under construction in Porto Corsini area, until 2019.
The announce has been given yesterday by Sandro Trevisanato, Chairman of Venezia Terminal Passeggeri and by Roberto Perrocchio, managing director, during a meeting in which the accounts of (nearly) the end of the year and the expectations for 2010 have been illustrated.
The data: If 2008 registered 1.215.088 cruise passengers, the estimates foresee that 2009 will achieve the amount of 1.397.981, raising of 15%. An increasing trend, considering also the global number of passengers 1.885.208 foreseen for the end of 2009, with a growth of 9,6 % if compared to last year.
Other figures: over 2 million of moved baggage, until 33.000 people in seasonal top period, 35.000 cruise passengers cars hosted in parking places and 181.452 vehicles concerning ferry boat traffic. The whole annual value of the direct cost esteem amounts to 220 million Euros.
Origin: regarding cruise passengers geographical origin, according to VTP data, 23% of them are Italian, while, among foreign people, the most affectionate are the Spanish (21%), followed by the Americans (16%), English (8%), French (7%) and Germans (6%).
First homeport. << In the last ten years – Trevisanato has explained – we have quadrupled the number of cruise passengers and, according to GPWILD esteems, we will become the first homeport (that is embarkation and debarkation port) in the Mediterranean sea, before Barcelona, Pireus and Civitavecchia. It is a significant jump forward, that makes us climb the positions also in the international ranking of cruise harbours too, in which forecasts state us at the 11th position for the end of the year.
Investments. The investment for improving the stopover amounts to € 50.000 (between spent and planned money). Further 17 million Euros are ready to be invested, in the next three years for restructuring the Building 109/110, for terminal use, for a mobile gangway of service to the Isonzo Terminal and for the transformation, for terminal use, also of a part of the first floor of the building 117.
Sant’Angelo Basin. An investment of 100 million Euros, yearly linked- activities of other 100 million, 14 months for realizing it: these are the data of Sant’Angelo Basin, a new terminal for very big cruise ships of exceptional size, which should rise close to Petroli Canal. Perocchio has explained that << an enormous last generation ship can move 10.000 passengers per touch>>.
Ravenna management. In the management of the new cruise port, VTP will be joined by a network formed by Guglielmo Marconi airport of Bologna, Bassani Spa agency and Royal Carribean Cruises Ltd, second world cruising group that, through 38 ships, attends to 4 million guests every year.
Manuela Pivato |
