Port authority, businesses reflect on record cruise ship season in Vancouver
It’s time to kiss goodnight to cruise ship season in Vancouver.
And what a season it’s been—with a record 1.32 million passengers coming through.
“When you compare that to 2023, which was previously a record-breaking cruise season, we actually surpassed our passenger levels for 2024 by 80,000 cruise passengers,” Chance McKee with the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority told CTV News at Canada Place on Monday.
That success story has translated into benefits for some businesses, including MAKE Vancouver’s Gastown location.
“It has been an excellent season,” the gift store’s manager John Ong said Monday. “I found this year tourism started early with the earlier cruise ships and they’re still going on. Like, last week was quite busy with the few ships that are still coming and going.”
This bounce back is a pleasant development after the cruise ship industry and related sectors went through so much during the pandemic.
"Tourists are such fun people, and we have a fun store, so we do have fun with them—they enjoy coming,” said Ong. “We're always told it's their favourite place to go, and a lot of that is because we love being here."
The port authority released a study earlier this year finding that passengers, crew and cruise lines spend a combined $1.1 billion locally each year.
This record setting season comes to an end Tuesday with the departure of Norwegian Jewel, with the port authority expecting to see similar numbers of visitors again next season.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Trudeau and Harris? Poilievre and Trump? Here's who Canadians think would work best with: survey
As Americans prepare to elect their next president on Tuesday, new data from the Angus Reid Institute suggests Canadians hold differing views as to which federal party leaders would be best suited to deal with either Donald Trump or Kamala Harris.
B.C. port employers launch lockout at terminals in labour dispute with workers
Employers at British Columbia ports say they are going ahead with locking out more than 700 foremen across the province after strike activities from union members began.
Months after VRBO booking, Taylor Swift fan told home 'not available' during Vancouver concert
A frustrated Taylor Swift fan is speaking out after being pushed from a short-term rental she booked for the upcoming Vancouver leg of the superstar’s Eras Tour.
Felonies, assassination attempts and a last-minute change on the ticket leads voters to Tuesday's U.S. election
A campaign that has careened through a felony trial, incumbent being pushed off the ticket and assassination attempts comes down to Election Day on Tuesday.
Measles cases in New Brunswick more than double in three days
A measles outbreak declared in New Brunswick’s Zone 3 last week, which includes Fredericton and the upper Saint John River Valley, has more than doubled since last week.
Prison sentences handed down for sexually abusive London, Ont. parents
In handing down the sentences for two London parents, Justice Thomas Heeney told the court, "The facts of this case were the most egregious that I have encountered during my 26 years on the bench."
She was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes about a year ago. Here's how her condition was reversed
A year ago, Lorraine O'Quinn was coping with stress, chronic illness and Type 2 diabetes. Then she discovered a health program that she says changed her life.
Surprise swing state? Iowa poll has Harris suddenly leading
Based on victories in the past two elections and polls leading up to Tuesday’s election, Donald Trump had seemed almost certain to win Iowa, but a new poll has Kamala Harris with a sudden three-point lead.
Russia suspected of sending incendiary devices on US- and Canada-bound planes, Wall Street Journal reports
Incendiary devices that ignited in Germany and the United Kingdom in July were part of a covert Russian operation that aimed to start fires aboard cargo and passenger flights heading to the U.S. and Canada, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported Monday, citing Western security officials.