CLIA executives are clinging to hope that they can persuade government officials to reconsider banning large cruise ships from the Nice-Cote d'Azur region in the south of France.
The cruise industry association is combating yet another attempt by a popular European destination to restrict ship access in the name of overtourism and environmental issues. This time, the ports are Nice and Villefranche-sur-Mer, and the restriction is a ban on ships carrying at least 900 guests.
"We are urging reconsideration of any actions that would ban cruise tourism in favor of a holistic tourism management approach, which proves time and again to be a best practice and the best way to manage tourism in ways that help communities thrive," said Samuel Maubanc, director general for CLIA in Europe.
Nice mayor Christian Estrosi signed a decree in late January that would prevent cruise ships carrying at least 900 passengers from letting their passengers off at the two ports on the French Riviera.
"The cruises that pollute and dump their low-cost clientele who consume nothing but leave their waste behind have no place with us," Estrosi, who is also president of the Nice-Cote d'Azur metropolis, said during an annual New Year's address, according to the industry news publication Maritime Executive. In November, Estrosi also called for reducing the number of short-term Airbnb rentals in Nice by 50%, said Nice-Matin, a regional French newspaper.
The ship ban would kick in July 1 and effectively eliminate contemporary and most premium brands from calling at either port, which would be especially impactful to Villefranche-sur-Mer, a tender port adjacent to Nice. Of the nearly 90 scheduled calls in Villefranche-sur-Mer this year, two-thirds of the ships carry enough passengers to be subject to the ban, according to the French newspaper Le Monde.
The cruise industry has had to fight attempts to reduce cruise traffic in other parts of Europe in recent years, including Venice, Barcelona, Amsterdam and the Greek islands of Santorini and Mykonos.
Although Estrosi brought stakeholders together in early February to discuss the decree, CLIA joined 20 maritime-focused organizations from the metropolitan area a few days later calling for dialogue and an economic assessment, calling the ban "a blow" to the tourism economy.
The decree could result in a loss of more than $10 million locally and over $600 million regionally, according to the groups. They said the decision also hurts French and European shipowners who invested in building sustainable ships in order to cruise in Europe but will no longer be allowed to call in those premier ports.
CLIA referred to the ban as an "evolving situation."
Nice is an important port of call
Nice serves as an important stop for the cruise industry, both as a turnaround port due to its proximity to its airport and, along with Villefranche-sur-Mer, as a central location on Mediterranean itineraries.
The lines most affected by the restriction are those with large ships, including Celebrity Cruises, Holland America Line, Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Royal Caribbean International, which call at Villefranche-sur-Mer. Oceania has so far been the only cruise line to comment on how to handle the ban. Four of Oceania's eight ships exceed the capacity limit by carrying around 1,200 passengers.
"The great thing about the Mediterranean is there are a myriad of phenomenal port options, especially along the French and Italian rivieras," said Frank A. Del Rio, the line's president.
Boost for small-ship cruising?
Jackie Friedman, president of Nexion Travel Group, said the ban creates uncertainty for advisors, who are concerned clients' itineraries will be changed close to the sailing date. But she also said that limiting Nice and Villefranche-su-Mer to smaller vessels could drive demand for small-ship cruising.
"While it's too early to determine the full impact, these changes could drive a shift in booking patterns, prompting travelers to secure reservations further in advance and increasing demand for smaller vessels and alternative ports as cruise lines adapt to evolving restrictions," she said.
At least one small-ship line has already tried to capitalize on the ban.
Ponant announced a new seven-day roundtrip itinerary from Nice two weeks after the mayor signed the decree, saying its ships are small enough to go "where larger vessels cannot reach."
Azamara Cruises' 700-guest ships are safely under the ban's threshold, but chief marketing officer Meg Lee said it's too early to say whether the small-ship cruise line has seen a bump in sales since the announcement in Nice.
And if even Azamara can visit those ports, said Michael Pawlus, head of itinerary planning, the line is always monitoring overtourism and tries to predict which ports will have big crowds based on the ships that will be there, and it will switch the days it visits so guests have a less crowded experience.
"Compared to 10 or 20 years ago, there's a lot more ships out there," Pawlus said. "So, it is becoming more of an issue where we can and can't go."
Geoff Cox, vice president of sales and marketing for KHM Travel Group, applauded the restrictions, although he doesn't think it will have much impact on the cruise industry as a whole.
"Some of these ports are being overrun with cruise [passengers], and it's impacting the experience," Cox said, adding that cruise lines "will keep pumping clients into ports as long as it makes them [money]. So, good to have some of these folks pushing back."