The fight for cruise ships to help keep Wellington tills ringing

Saturday, 15 November 2025

When the Anthem of the Seas sails into Wellington harbour on Sunday, it will be carrying more than 4000 passengers eager to explore the city — and hopefully spend their cash.

It will also be the biggest ship to visit Wellington this season.

Yes, cruise ship season is under way — and whether you love it or hate it, the city needs it.

Across the country, cruise ship visits are in decline, and with them goes valuable income. For retailers grappling with rising costs and a sluggish economy, those floating visitors are crucial.

A Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment report earlier this year underlined just how much the industry matters. In the 2023–2024 season, cruise passengers spent $648 million nationwide (excluding fuel and GST), with the biggest benefits in Auckland, Tauranga and Wellington.

But the same report warned the sector is under pressure. Rising costs to dock and operate in New Zealand waters have seen companies like P&O Cruises and Disney Cruise Line pull out. This will be Disney’s final season here, with overall cruise numbers down about 40%.

Wellington, however, has managed to hold its ground.

Seventy-one ships are scheduled to visit the capital between now and April 2026, bringing an estimated 124,287 passengers and crew. That’s just two fewer visits than last season, and includes seven ships making their first call.

That’s not bad going, given other ports have seen sharper declines due to biofouling risks, stricter environmental regulations, rising port fees, and broader uncertainty around cruise rules — all of which are making it more expensive to operate in New Zealand.

WellingtonNZ chief executive Mark Oldershaw and CentrePort boss Anthony Delaney have spent part of the week in Australia talking to cruise executives, pitching Wellington’s strengths and exploring ways to make visits more rewarding for passengers — and more sustainable for the city.

Oldershaw said the competition was fierce.

“We’re up against destinations with very friendly cost structures for ships — places like Japan. We need to make sure we don’t miss out.”

A new strategy was being shaped, focused on what made Wellington stand out and looking at what would work best in Wellington, both for ships of all sizes and what the city is offering.

“People want experiences as well as shopping opportunities. We want to offer them uniquely Wellington cultural experiences,” Oldershaw said.

The volunteer Wellington City Ambassadors and isite team at Tākina were eager to connect with cruisegoers, helping them to disperse throughout the city and have a positive visitor experience.

“We also invite Wellingtonians and local businesses to engage proactively and to view the cruise season as an opportunity to showcase Wellington’s unique experiences, hospitality, culture, and retail offerings.”

Delaney said they had to get a good grip on how to bring everyone together, work as a collective and promote Wellington. Collaboration was key,

“It’s about bringing everyone together — the port, tourism operators, retailers — and promoting Wellington as a cohesive destination. How can we differentiate ourselves to those passengers walking off the ship?”

This season would act as a pilot, testing ideas to make Wellington more welcoming and distinctive as a port of call with the flow-on effect hopefully being cafés and restaurants filling up, retail foot traffic climbing , and an increase in demand for local tours and transport.

Oldershaw said industry data consistently showed cruise visitors spend their money on short-term experiences, souvenirs, food and drink — supporting small and medium businesses across the region.

“The strategy is about future-proofing that income,” he said, adding that last season the cruise ship industry brought about $100 million into the region.

Delaney agreed it was about long-term sustainability — “keeping the income flowing”.

It was vital that something worked to keep the ships coming. And not just for this season — cruise itineraries were booked years in advance, so any strategy needed to hold for future seasons too. Delaney added it also had to align with other ports, since most cruise ships stopped in Auckland first

With cruise lines like Royal Caribbean already cutting scheduled visits for the 2026–2027 season, it’s clear something needs to be done to bring them back.

Trinity Group director Jeremy Smith, whose company owns Trinity Hotel, Lulu, and the Arborist Rooftop Bar, said that while it’s not all about hospitality, cruise ship arrivals were great for Wellington and more needed to be done to maximise the experience.

“They often have food and beverage packages on the ship and come and go in a day, so places like the Old Bailey where they can sit outside benefit where some restaurants might not.”

He said the ships needed to be enticed to stay more than a day and the model could be rethought.

“Let’s look at marketing to the smaller ones and getting them to stay two or three days.”

He said packages aimed at things like craft beer experiences or historic walks could be marketed. “We could package things better.” .

Retail NZ chief executive Carolyn Young said the benefits were tangible.

“It’s vitally important, right now with the economy so tough it's extra important.”

She said a lot of cruise ship passengers visited the Botanic Gardens, Te Papa and the Cable Car - but simply walking through town increased foot traffic, bringing more people into city shops.

The association recently said retailers were cautiously optimistic heading in to the Christmas season but weren’t planning on taking on extra staff. Tight margins, cost-of-living concerns and subdued consumer confidence were continuing to shape trading conditions.

It also published a guide to help retailers get the most out of the cruise ship season including extending opening hours or putting out a sign welcoming passengers from the ship currently in port.

Young said they had to have a reason to come here and it had to be easy and welcoming.

“The days when there are two cruise ships in port really have some vibrancy in Wellington.”

Tourism and Hospitality Minister Louise Upston recently said the contribution of cruise tourism to New Zealand’s economy injected $1.37 billion in the last financial year.

“We’ve worked hard to provide clarity on regulatory costs and support new ways to manage biofouling,” she said.

There was now a fast-track approval process supporting infrastructure like Port of Auckland’s development of a new wharf and passenger terminal for cruise vessels.