One of the elements contributing to this rise is the unfavourable political context in Ukraine
The number of cruise-tourists that will arrive in Romania is going to rise by about 20% in 2014, and one of the elements contributing to this increase will be the unfavourable political context of Ukraine.
If in 2013, about 54.000 passengers visited the port of Constanța, in 2014, up until this day, approximately 64.500 passengers have arrived. This increase is due to the combined efforts of the Maritime Ports Administration of Constanța, the Seaside Association – The Danube Delta and local authorities, but also because of the unfavourable political context in Ukraine that determined all cruises to replace the port of Odessa with the port of Constanța in their itinerary
Association for the Promotion and Development of Seaside Tourism – Danube Delta
press release
According to the association, the 64.500 tourists that arrived in the country spent over 6 million euros in the days that the ships were docked in the Port of Constanța.
Furthermore, a lot of the ships that chose to dock in Constanța extend their stay with approximately one night, some even doubling their stay from the precedent year.
Most of the passengers that arrive are American citizens, followed closely by French citizens, Italian citizens and German citizens.
During the days in which the ship stays in the port, the tourists can chose to go on trips like touring the seaside, or go Murfatlar wine-tasting, one-day cruises to the Danube Delta, archaeological or monastery visits. They can also opt for a tour of the Capital and participate in Romanian folkloric shows and try a Romanian traditional breakfast.
Cruise ship tourism is a niche with a real potential and we are focusing on it. The Port of Constanța, the city of Constanța and all of Romania are set to gain because a lot of the cruise ships won’t dock in Odessa anymore. I believe that, in this context, Romania needs to strengthen its promotion strategies for Romanian destinations, given the current political situation
Corina Martin
president of the Seaside Association – The Danube Delta
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