Guernsey tourism board considers aligning events with cruise calls
A local coach operator reports fewer annual cruise bookings, while officials examine ways to coordinate shoreside activity with ship visits.
Guernsey recorded 81,681 visitors in its latest quarterly travel and visitor accommodation bulletin, excluding passengers arriving by yacht or cruise ship. The total was described in the bulletin as close to pre-pandemic levels.
Hannah Beacom, managing director of Island Coachway, said cruise-related bookings had previously covered about 100 days a year and could be secured as much as two years ahead. She said the operator is now seeing between 40 and 50 booked days annually.
Beacom said individual cruise calls can bring between 250 and 5,000 passengers, adding that she would not expect every business in town to open for a small number of visitors. She also said 25% of cruise liners—and at times all of them—operate on an all-inclusive basis with pre-booked activities, including coach excursions, trips to Herm or Sark, and local walks.
Charlie Walker, co-chair of the States’ Tourism Advisory Board, said the group is working with organisers to match events such as VisitGuernsey’s Seafront Sundays with cruise calls. Walker said the board could also examine seasonal opening hours.