Record year for cruise ships setting sail in Toronto

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    Cruise ship season is upon us in Toronto. As David Zura reports, industry experts believe 2023 is going to be a record setting year.

    By David Zura

    The Great Lakes cruising season is now well underway and Ports Toronto tells CityNews this year is once again setting another record.

    Fifty-four ships are scheduled to visit the city between May and October, bringing more than 22,000 passengers to the city.

    “This is actually our third record season in a row. We had a record last year in 2022 and we’ve already broken the record this year again,” said Ports Toronto spokesperson Jessica Pellerin. “We were coming off a couple of years of pandemic restrictions for cruise ships, so those were difficult of course, but cruises came roaring back. We had a lot of ships last year, a lot of passengers, and this year, the demand was there.”

    Stephen Burnett, Executive Director of the Great Lakes Cruise Association, said they were quite prepared to resume services, but were definitely surprised at the volume.

    “What we were not quite prepared for was the amount of business that was coming, which was quite formidable,” said Burnett. “Not always easy to develop because the cruise lines have had issues with staffing, as everyone else has during COVID but we’ve sorted it out.”

    Burnett said they expect a banner year for the association.

    “Post-pandemic, we’ve seen a great interest from, not only the cruise lines, but of course, their guests. And it will be spread right across the Great Lakes from as far East as Montreal, and as far West as Thunder Bay.”

    Lakeshore Excursions said the number one port in the Great Lakes has always been Mackinaw Island, but some new ports are getting some attention.

    “SParry Sound has done really well and Killarney, Ontario, first time having a ship in 80 years last year and a second ship has joined,” said owner Bruce O’Hare.

    Luckily, Ports Toronto said they were ready for the influx.

    “We’re lucky here that we can accommodate a couple of cruise ships at a time,” said Pellerin.

    The port in Toronto is also a turnaround port, allowing the downtown and waterfront business community to host arriving and departing cruise ship passengers for several days at a time.

    According to Cruise the Great Lakes, an initiative led by the Conference of Great Lakes Governors and Premiers, cruising in the Great Lakes generated an economic value of over $120 million U.S. to the region’s ports and communities in 2022.

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