Business View Caribbean - November 2015 15
shore excursions, 20 percent more per passenger
for local crafts and souvenirs and two percent more
for food and beverages, along with a higher percent-
age of passengers making purchases in each of
these categories. In fact, more than half of all transit
passengers that went ashore purchased a shore ex-
cursion and food and beverages.
Just over 75 percent of passenger expenditures
were made in four categories: watches and jewelry
($877 million), shore excursions ($551 million), cloth-
ing ($238 million), and food and beverages ($189
million). Shore excursions was the most popular cat-
egory, with over half (53 percent) of all passengers
purchasing this and local tour operators receiving
an average of $43.99 per passenger directly from
cruise passengers and cruise lines.
The estimated 4.5 million crewmembers visiting the
35 participating destinations spent approximately
$302 million for goods and services, with an average
per crew expenditure of $67.10, heavily weighted to-
ward food and beverages, jewelry, and electronics.
In addition to net payments to local tour operators,
cruise lines also provided data for payments to ports
for passenger taxes and port services, as well as
payments to local businesses for supplies and ser-
vices. These categories accounted for an estimated
$400.8 million.
Other key findings from the study include that 63
percent of passengers made their first visit at the
destination; 93.7 percent went ashore; 65 percent
made onshore purchases; and passengers spent an
average 4.38 hours ashore. Plus visit satisfactions
surveys found that cruise passengers were very
satisfied with their overall destination visit; shore
excursions received the highest score of all visit at-
tributes; and passenger interactions with residents
and store employees were very positive.
The study was released at the 22nd annual FCCA
Cruise Conference & Trade Show in Cozumel,
Mexico. Cozumel itself participated in the study
and ranked third in overall expenditures with $365
million. St. Maarten led all destinations with nearly
$423 million (while ranking third in passenger and
crew onshore visits, it had the highest average total
expenditure per visit of $189), followed by the Baha-
mas with $373 million.
The FCCA engages this study as one of many ways
it works with destinations to foster understanding of
cruise tourism, its benefits and how to best actual-
ize its potential. The study’s release during the FCCA
Cruise Conference & Trade Show further adds to the
event’s focus on maximizing this potential through a
series of meetings, workshops and networking op-
portunities between destination stakeholders and
cruise executives to offer insight and develop busi-
ness and relationships.
