The fact that we are edging closer to the heart of the tourist season is evident by the number of cruise ships entering Split’s city port. Namely, on Sunday, two cruise ships sailed into Split, both under the Panamanian flag, and both under the cap of MSC Krstarenja. Their Musica and Sinfonia cruisers brought thousands of guests to the city over the weekend, albeit only on a one-day excursion, as they sailed off at 6 pm, reports Slobodna Dalmacija on May 19, 2019.
The Musica ship can accommodate 2,550 guests, while the Sinfonia carries one hundred more. Apart from the Port Authority of Split, who surely get their share of the profits, Split caterers and sellers of ice cream and souvenirs earned little from the cruise ship guests, though buyers of magnets seemed to make the biggest buzz.
"These are not the guests who spend a lot, they have everything on the ship, and in the city they only create crowds,” commented one Split resident.
Split will, however, have to get used to these guests. On Sunday, the city welcomed only the 60th cruise ship this year, and by the end of the year, there will be more than 224 arrivals.
Namely, the Port Authority of Split has announced the arrival of 284 cruise ships on excursions to Split this year alone - and this is still not the final number. Recall, Split welcomed 260 cruise ships last year, and by 2020, some 305 arrivals have been announced.
No stranger to cruise ships, Dubrovnik implemented a new measure that will introduce a daily tax for guests of cruise ship passengers in the amount of one euro per person in 2021, from which the city will be able to turn about 950 thousand euros into cash in just one year. The move will limit the number of cruise ships in Dubrovnik to two daily, so that no more than 5,000 visitors will arrive in the city in any one day. This is the result of intense negotiations between the City of Dubrovnik and the largest cruise companies in the CLIA association, which took place to attempt to solve the problem of up to seven cruisers a day entering Dubrovnik, which would bring up to 10,000 passengers into the city per day.
Should Split look into doing something similar?
To read more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page.
