The International Transport Forum has released a report analysing Dublin’s attractiveness as a cruise port and assesses the impacts of cruise shipping on the city.

Over the last decade, Dublin has grown as an important port of call for cruises in Northern Europe. From just over 30,000 passengers in 2003, Dublin hosted close to 149,000 cruise passengers in 2015, making it Ireland’s largest cruise port. Cruise passengers now represent 7 to 8% of total tourists visiting Dublin, a share that has increased rapidly over the last decade.

The ITF report identifies how the value cruise tourism brings could be further increased by developing Dublin into a cruise home port – that is a port from which cruises start and where they end.

The ITF report evaluates existing policies, provides its recommendations to increase the positive impacts of cruise shipping and outlines its vision for fully realising the potential for the city of Dublin.

Under which conditions could this be achieved? Which policy measures would be needed? Which stakeholders would need to be involved?

The report’s recommendations include:

• Implement the Alexandra Basin Redevelopment Project: This project will provide new
  berths for cruise shipping. Developing more adapted infrastructure for cruise ships and
  passengers is the primary concern to improve Dublin’s success as a cruise port. With approval
  from the national planning authority granted, implementation could go ahead at full speed.
• Develop a joint cruise strategy for the whole city of Dublin: As part of such a strategy
  Cruise Dublin could be promoted through joint marketing and communication of Dublin as a
  cruise destination.
• Better exploit Dublin’s asset as a potential home port: In order to increase local economic
  impacts of cruise shipping, Dublin’s assets as a potential cruise home port could be leveraged
  and the facilities needed for realising such an ambition provided, including a cruise terminal
  building structure.
• Resolve constraints related to cruise passenger flows: Solutions for alleviating constraints
  include more parking spots for coaches and planning to ease passenger traffic flows between
  the new cruise terminal and the city centre. The ambition should be to have these measures
  implemented when the new cruise terminal becomes operational.
• Develop a green cruise port policy: This could start with a systematic monitoring of
  environmental impacts of cruise ships, including air emissions, to be extended with mitigation
  measures, such as incentive schemes for cleaner cruise ships.

To read more, the full report can be obtained here.