Major revenue will pour into Portland in the coming months as cruise ships dock at the former Bath Iron Works. This year, 36 ships, carrying a total of more than 4,000 passengers, are scheduled to arrive from May through early October.
Exactly how much revenue does this business bring to Portland? “We can count on an aggregate of $200 per passenger – even if they don’t ever leave the ship,” said Benjamin Snow, waterfront manager.
This $200 figure is actually derived from a variety of studies of the impact of cruise ships nationwide – hence Snow’s “aggregate.” Portland has yet to do a direct economic impact study of its own. Nevertheless this number seems to be used routinely as a baseline for everyone affected by the cruise ship industry.
To begin with, these passengers bring money simply by docking here. The cruises require tugboats, longshoremen on deck and the reloading of both fuel and food. As a touch of local tourism, vendors bring authentic lobster meals right on board. At least half of the passengers will take a day trip, employing guided bus tour operators to shuttle between the sights. Two popular day trips travel outside of Portland: Freeport and Kennebunkport. Which isn’t a bad thing, argues Barbara Whitten, president of the Convention and Visitors Bureau of Greater Portland.
“Tours mean money,” says Whitten. “We make more money if they get off the ship, and we like to share the wealth with our neighbors. Aside from the tours, we are also finding since the ships dock in near Old Port, people can more easily just walk off the ship onto sidewalks in order to sightsee and shop. This was far more difficult a couple years ago when the ships docked way down near the South Portland Bridge.”
When passengers stroll off the ship, they are greeted by downtown guides who then direct them to the city’s many attractions. Unfortunately, many of these same attractions are traditionally closed on the days when some cruise ships are scheduled to dock. This season, approximately a fourth of the ships will find themselves in this situation. For example, the entire Old Port is virtually closed until noon on Sundays and all of the city’s cultural sites are closed on Mondays – from the Portland Museum of Art to Victoria Mansion.
Some efforts are being made to accommodate the passengers who unwittingly arrive on an unfavorable day. Victoria Mansion, which closes Mondays because of staffing reasons and the need to have one day of maintenance, will welcome special tours if prearranged. “If a tour operator with 20 people asks for a tour on a Monday we will run a special tour,” says Julia Kirby, assistant to the museum director.
On the other hand, it simply is not cost effective to open the Portland Museum of Art on a Monday. “What would happen if they opened their entire museum, and only a few from the cruise ship came?” wonders Whitten.
When ships dock on a Sunday, another facilitator is Ted Ney, president of the Old Port Retail Association and owner of Gallery Seven on Exchange Street. “We try to let local people know when ships arrive early Sunday so they can open early if they can,” explains Ney. “We also try to get ships to extend their departure hours on these Sundays so people have more time to spend here.”
While the Old Port is crowded with tourists every day of the summer, Ney does note an increase in business when the cruise ships come in. “When those passengers arrive we definitely see a very nice spike of business on those days.”
Stiff security measures also bring more jobs to this market. Passengers have special pass cards that must match up with computerized photos before they re-board. Bags are checked and state-of-the-art metal detectors are employed. All of these sources of income come back to that “aggregate $200” figure: the multi-source estimate of revenue of what each passenger brings to Portland. This season, using that yardstick, at least $8 million will come in. In Portland, it seems, cruise ships are big business.