Port Charlottetown Ends 2022 Cruise Ship Season in Strong Position

[By: Port Charlottetown]

[Charlottetown, PE] Port Charlottetown officials say they are very pleased with 2022’s cruise ship season and are excited about the prospects for 2023.

The 2022 season ended today, November 3rd, with the arrival of the MS Insignia carrying 400 crew and 698 passengers.

According to Port Charlottetown’s CEO, Mike Cochrane, 55 of 74 cruise ships originally scheduled for 2022 arrived with just over 96,000 guests.

The smaller number of ships visiting was because of cancellations due to the severe aftermath of Hurricane Fiona.

“Like many tourism destinations, 2022 was a bounce back year for us following a couple of really tough years with the pandemic,” says Cochrane. “It was great to get back into the swing of things and those 96,000 guests generated a lot of business for Island restaurateurs, artisans, retailers and tourism operators.”

Cochrane says that a record-breaking 100 cruise ships are scheduled for 2023, and Port Charlottetown staff are really excited about the major berth expansion that has been completed.

“This $12 million expansion was started during the pandemic as a partnership between the federal and provincial governments and Port Charlottetown. The new berth, which began operating this fall, has doubled the port’s docking capacity and will really enhance passenger safety, convenience and comfort going forward.”

Port Charlottetown was just recently awarded the 2022 Premier’s Award for Tourism in recognition and celebration of tourism operators who have helped move the industry forward and inspired others to take steps to do the same.

“I strongly believe that Charlottetown and Prince Edward Island are a premier cruise destination that Port Charlottetown can showcase,” says Cochrane. “And it’s not just the land and the sea that make us a great destination. We have an abundance of engaging tourism products for our guests and innovative tourism operators who work extremely hard to deliver a great Island experience.”