Guangzhou has recently launched a tourism event. As we all know, the beautiful South China Sea is a valuable maritime territory of our motherland. It is rich in natural resources and beautiful natural scenery. Everyone can sign up for the South China Sea cruise tour event recently held in Guangzhou.
Guangzhou International Cruise Terminal began operations on January 3, 2016. Dream Cruises’ “Genting Dream,” Star Cruises’ “SuperStar Virgo,” and Costa Cruises’ “Victoria” will all set sail from the home port, which is located in Nansha. From the Nansha home port, you can travel to Da Nang and Nha Trang in Vietnam, Miyakojima and Naha in Japan, and other cities.
During the Chinese traditional Lunar New Year, the passenger volume of Nansha cruise tourism was full.
Everyone consciously lined up and waited, looking forward to their dream trip, free sailing and tourism in the South China Sea.
Nansha, as one of the southernmost regions of China, why has it been accepted and loved by mass tourists? There are many reasons for this, good service attitude and rich and novel natural scenery are very important.
Tourism policies have boosted the explosive potential of the Nansha cruise market.
In the national “Belt and Road” strategy, Nansha is designated as an important hub of the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. It shoulders the strategic mission of connecting Hong Kong and Macau, serving the mainland, and facing the world. The cruise industry, as an important carrier for implementing the “Belt and Road” strategy, plays a positive role in strengthening the functions of the international shipping hub, improving the level of opening up, and promoting the development of service trade.
Staff handle business for outbound travelers
In February this year, the provincial Party Committee and the provincial government made it clear that Nansha should be built into a high-level open gateway hub. Cruise tourism is undoubtedly a good window to showcase the open gateway hub.
Cruise ships are mobile “tourism destinations.” Nansha can connect the ocean and land, and connect domestic and overseas through cruise ships.
In this regard, the Nansha District Tourism Bureau said: “We will focus on building cruise tourism into an important brand for a high-level open gateway hub.” Nansha’s new strategic positioning will strengthen its radiation capabilities to the Pearl River Delta and the whole country, and will also gather huge potential for the cruise tourism market.
Guangzhou Nansha International Cruise Home Port Concept Image
The Guangzhou Municipal Government also issued the “Several Measures on Accelerating the Development of Guangzhou International Cruise Industry” this year, and has been putting out 30 million yuan annually for three consecutive years to encourage the development of the cruise industry, and to reward cruise companies, travel agencies, and other cruise-related enterprises.
In addition, the pleasant climate conditions are also a major advantage for Nansha’s cruise development. Nansha is located near the Tropic of Cancer, with the lowest temperature above 5 degrees Celsius and an average annual temperature of 21.7 degrees Celsius. Compared to the north in winter, Nansha’s climate is suitable for cruise ships to operate throughout the year.
Favorable Geographical Location: Unique geographical advantages attract tourists to Nansha cruise tourism
Nansha is located in the geometric center of the Pearl River Delta urban agglomeration, covering 14 large and medium-sized cities and a population of 66 million within a radius of 100 kilometers. Nansha is accelerating the construction of the Guangzhou Nansha New Area urban sub-center, gradually transforming from a geographical geometric center to a regional transportation hub. The construction of the “Three High and Three Fast” high-speed expressways and the “Five Longitudinal and Five Transverse” major transportation lines is underway, gradually forming a major transportation network that closely connects Nansha District, Guangzhou urban area, and surrounding areas. It will achieve rapid access to the central urban area of Guangzhou and cities on both sides of the Pearl River within 30 minutes, and reach major cities in the Pearl River Delta within 60 minutes. Travelers from South China previously needed to board cruise ships in Hong Kong, but now they can embark on a cruise journey from Nansha.
Genting Cruise Lines’ “Genting Dream” sails with Nansha as its home port
With a large customer base in South China and a superior transportation location, Guangdong’s tourism market has set off a wave of “boarding a cruise ship in Nansha” since Nansha opened its cruise routes.
Harmony: Multi-party promotion paves the way for the development of Nansha’s cruise industry
Nansha government departments, Guangzhou-based inspection units, and Nansha enterprises work together in unison. They create conditions where none exist, allowing cruise tourism to enter the right track quickly.
Currently, cruise ships dock at the Nansha Phase III Terminal of Guangzhou Port. Starting in November 2015, with the support of various Guangzhou-based inspection units and relevant government departments, Guangzhou Port rebuilt relevant facilities at the container cargo terminal in just two months, enabling it to operate international cruise ships on a regular basis. With this, it began to carry out cruise tourism business, demonstrating its strong execution ability and efficiency.
The Nansha International Cruise Terminal Complex project was launched in August 2016. The first phase of the project plans to build one 225,000-ton and one 150,000-ton cruise berth. It is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2018 and put into operation in early 2019. By then, the annual passenger throughput capacity will reach 750,000. The Nansha International Cruise Terminal Complex project is one of the first batch of 28 PPP pilot projects. The first phase of the international cruise terminal complex covers an area of about 230,000 square meters and will build a large-scale complex integrating a large-scale cruise terminal, terminal building, theme hotel, business center, and high-end brand duty-free mall. It will develop cruise tourism and high-end commerce as two major leading industries, create a water-based international gateway image for Guangzhou, and achieve integrated development of industry and city.
Guangzhou Nansha International Cruise Terminal Project’s Groundbreaking Ceremony Held in Puzhou Square
The Nansha Exit-Entry Border Inspection Station has upgraded and built 16 self-service channels in the Guangzhou Port International Cruise Terminal waiting hall, adopting a “single window” system to achieve 100% single window inspection, significantly improving passenger clearance speed and experience. Entry procedures that used to take at least ten minutes of queuing are now completed in seconds using self-service channels, effectively improving inspection efficiency.
Guangzhou Nansha International Cruise Terminal Officially Breaks Ground
The Nansha Tourism Bureau has put in great effort in promoting cruise tourism and optimizing the cruise passenger experience. The Nansha District Tourism Bureau jointly held a strategic cooperation press conference with Genting Cruise Lines and signed a strategic cooperation agreement. It held events such as the 2016 Nansha International Cruise Tourism Festival and the 2017 Nansha International Cruise Promotion Conference. To promote Nansha tourism products, the Nansha Tourism Bureau signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Ctrip.com, and the two parties will carry out close cooperation in aspects such as tourism product development and tourism destination promotion. It has established a cruise media alliance with more than 50 news media to promote cruise culture and cultivate the cultural concept of “cruise ships as mobile tourism destinations.”
The Nansha Tourism Bureau, together with border inspection and multiple cruise travel agencies, has reached a consensus on standardizing the management of cruise ships in port and improving the passenger travel experience. A cruise port tourism service inquiry center has been added to provide heartwarming activities for cruise passengers. The activities include passenger satisfaction surveys, providing Nansha tourism information, distributing Nansha tourism maps, adding caring seats, providing caring snacks, etc. In addition, the Nansha Tourism Bureau has organized the Nansha Waterbird World Ecological Park, Nansha Wetland Scenic Area, and Million Sunflower Garden Scenic Area to jointly promote discounts, distribute Nansha scenic area coupons to cruise passengers, promote shore excursions, and enrich the cruise passenger experience.
Nansha District Tourism Bureau Signs Strategic Cooperation Agreement with Dream Cruises
To promote the development of Nansha’s cruise industry, the Nansha District Tourism Bureau is working hard to apply for the China (Guangzhou Nansha) Cruise Tourism Development Pilot Zone, relying on the policy advantages of the free trade zone to provide a better business environment for cruise industry development.
With the rapid growth of the Asian middle class and affluent travel groups, the Asian high-end cruise tourism market is currently on an upward trend. In less than a month, the first cruise ship of Dream Cruises, “Genting Dream,” will hold its maiden voyage at Guangzhou Nansha Port. Thatcher Brown, president of Dream Cruises, recently said in an interview with reporters from the 21st Century Business Herald that among the three brands of Genting Hong Kong, Dream Cruises fills the gap in the Asian high-end cruise market, and is also very optimistic about the development prospects of Guangzhou Nansha Port as a cruise home port.
2016 can be considered the first year of development for Guangzhou’s cruise industry. Since Star Cruises’ “SuperStar Virgo” launched a fixed route from Guangzhou Nansha Port at the beginning of the year, Guangzhou Customs data shows that by the end of August, Guangzhou has operated a total of 138 inbound and outbound cruises, receiving approximately 240,000 passengers, making it the second largest cruise city in China, with passenger volume second only to Shanghai.
With the commissioning of the Nansha International Cruise Terminal, major cruise giants from home and abroad have begun to make inroads into the South China market. However, many industry insiders believe that the cruise industry still suffers from product homogeneity, single shipping routes, and generally mediocre onshore experiences. For operators, how to differentiate their competition remains a question to be resolved.
Making Inroads into Nansha Port
It is understood that Genting Hong Kong Limited, the world’s third largest cruise industry operator, mainly owns three well-known cruise brands: Star Cruises, Dream Cruises, and Crystal Cruises. The “Genting Dream,” which will set sail on November 13, is the first cruise ship under Dream Cruises, built by a German shipyard. It is 18 decks high and can accommodate 3,400 passengers, touted as one of the largest and most spacious cruise ships in Asia.
Brown said that Dream Cruises’ local features are mainly reflected in its onboard dining and personalized services. “Dining is the most important aspect of cruise vacations. Chinese people seek the authentic flavor of food, so the food on board will try to reflect the differences between the north and south.”
In the face of the increasingly large Chinese market, this Asian luxury cruise ship has also launched a number of innovative projects. Brown told reporters that the “Genting Dream” will officially hold the “Chasing Dreams in Life” series of sharing sessions on its maiden voyage. At that time, they will also invite former astronauts from the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration, world-class photographers, and other guests to the ship to share their life experiences with passengers, enhancing the cruise travel experience.
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