Belfast Tourism cruises on!
THE final cruise ship of the year sailed into Belfast
on 1st October signalling the end of a busy cruise season
for the city which welcomed 35 cruise ships bringing in almost
55,000 visitors.The docking of the Norwegian Sun brings the total
number of cruise passengers and crew to arrive in to Belfast
Harbour to 350,000, since the first came alongside in 1999, and is
as a result of the award-winning Cruise Belfast initiative, a
marketing partnership between the Belfast Visitor & Convention
Bureau (BVCB) and Belfast Harbour. The initiative, now in its
12th year, has firmly established Belfast as a
destination of choice on the international cruise map.
The Lord Mayor of Belfast, Councillor Patrick Convery was at the
quayside to exchange plaques - a maritime tradition for first time
visits – with Captain Ronnie Borg, commented on the tourism sectors
importance within the city’s economy, and its solid performance
despite the tough economic climate. He said: “In welcoming
the 35th cruise ship to dock in Belfast this year, it’s
a marker that tourism continues to build on the successes of recent
years, where last year we welcomed 9.3m visitors, generating £451m
for the economy. It is through working in partnership with
the private sector that tourism will continue to provide a major
boost to the economy, sustaining employment, attracting investment
and creating a better city for everyone.
He added: “Along with the success of the
Cruise Belfast Initiative I am delighted to see that business and
conference tourism has continued to flourish. To date in 2010, one
hundred major conferences have been held in the city which has
brought almost 20,000 delegates to Belfast representing over 71,000
bed nights and £28 million in revenue. A further 76
conferences have already been won by the Belfast Visitor &
Convention Bureau as far ahead as 2014, which will bring 17,000
delegates, generating in the region of 50,000 bed nights and an
estimated revenue £21m, illustrating the key role business tourism
plays in supporting our tourism industry drive the economy forward
despite economic hardships.”
Alongside the cruise ship success
Belfast continues to see strong interest as a city break
destination with over 320 000 enquires coming through the Belfast
Welcome Centre and the Tourist Information Centres at the George
Belfast City Airport and Belfast International Airport.
Early indications also show that for the first
six months of the year hotel rooms sales have remained constant in
comparison to last year with leisure visitor figures and visitors
from the Republic of Ireland delivering positive results.
The Lord Mayor concluded: “A number of
factors have contributed to Belfast’s tourism performance - great
value for money offers, a growing and exciting calendar of events
and an ever expanding range of tours, attractions and retail
offering across the city. Belfast tourism has shown its
resilience and it’s important that we continue to build on our
success so that we can leverage the significant opportunities in
the run up to 2012 and beyond.”