How much cruise visitors spend in the Caribbean

Note on the source. This source should be read with caution: it may be funded by the sector, a draft or a thesis, or rely on self-reported or modelled data. See the limitations below.

The question

How much do passengers, crew and cruise lines spend in 35 cruise destinations in the Caribbean, Mexico and Central and South America, and how much employment and how many wages does this spending generate?

The method

Questionnaires distributed in cabins after the call on ships of FCCA member lines, October 2014 - May 2015 (over 450 distributions; 44,634 passenger and 18,809 crew questionnaires); port and cruise line data on arrivals, port fees, supplies and payments to excursion operators; economic models for each destination (GDP, employment, wages) to estimate direct and indirect effects in the cruise year May 2014 - April 2015. An update of similar studies from 2006, 2009 and 2012.

What the study finds

US$3.16 bnestimated direct spending in the 35 destinations (2014/15)By the study's estimates, in the 2014/2015 cruise year cruise tourism brought USD 3.16 billion of direct spending to the 35 destinations examined, associated in total (direct and indirect effects) with 75,050 jobs and USD 976 million in wages.

US$103.83average onshore spend per passenger visitEach passenger visit is worth an average of USD 103.83 in onshore spending across the 35 destinations, but the gap is wide, from USD 42.58 in Trinidad to USD 191.26 in St. Maarten.

67%of spending concentrated in just seven destinationsTwo thirds of spending (67%, or USD 2.11 billion) is concentrated in just seven of the 35 destinations, each with more than USD 100 million in direct spending.

88%of arriving passengers who go ashoreAccording to port and cruise line data, on average 88% of arriving passengers go ashore, against just 39% of crew; these shares are practically stable compared with the 2012 study.

Among the transit passenger parties who answered the survey, 55.5% bought a shore excursion; of these, 74% bought it from the cruise line, 14% directly from onshore operators and the rest through travel agents or other channels.
In the six home ports examined, passengers starting or ending their cruise spend an average of USD 107.45 during their stay; hotels and excursion operators receive about USD 69.7 million in total, or 68% of these passengers' spending.
Businesses directly supplying cruise visitors and lines employ an estimated 44,496 people and pay USD 559.7 million in wages: on average USD 71,000 of spending supports one direct job, and 18% of direct spending ends up as wage income.
Because these economies import heavily, indirect effects are smaller than direct ones in every destination, and implied employment and wage multipliers stay below 2.0 (against 2.4 estimated by the same authors for the United States).

Why it matters for ports and cities

The study provides reference values comparable across many ports: spending per passenger and per crew member, the share going ashore, and the spending needed per job. It also indicates that cruise lines dominate excursion sales, keeping part of the price, and that in small economies imports reduce indirect benefits.

Limitations

Commissioned and funded by the region's cruise line association (FCCA) and by the destinations, with questionnaires distributed by the cruise lines themselves: possible selection bias and no independent review. The impact models are described only in broad terms, and comparisons with 2012 are limited by the different number of destinations.

Full reference and source

Business Research & Economic Advisors (BREA) per la Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association (FCCA) e le destinazioni partecipanti (2015). Economic Contribution of Cruise Tourism to the Destination Economies. A Survey-based Analysis of the Impacts of Passenger, Crew and Cruise Line Spending. Volume I: Aggregate Analysis.

Read the original study ↗

Summary written by the ODYBOAT Observatory in our own words. Tables and figures belong to the authors.