Published on Tuesday, 28 August 2018 at 4:36:08 PM
Geraldton is up against Dubai and Norway for the prestigious title of ‘Destination of the Year’ as part of the Seatrade Cruise Awards 2018.
Back for the 12th year running, the Awards recognise success stories in the cruise industry from ports, innovative shore excursions and outstanding service to the industry.
With Geraldton’s cruise ship calendar booming in recent years, City of Greater Geraldton Mayor Shane Van Styn said it was no wonder Geraldton was named a finalist.
“Geraldton has become a very popular destination in Australia for cruise ships to stop,” he said.
“In February alone we had a total of five ships visit our City – four of them had never visited Geraldton before.
“A big shout out to Cruise Geraldton, the team at the Visitor Centre, the key attractions and all the volunteer groups connected to tourism, including the cruise ship meet and greet volunteers who really make Geraldton a great destination to visit.”
The Destination of the Year category is awarded to a region/tourism body/association which has made significant strides in promoting cruise-tourism over the past 12 months.
Geraldton has been named a finalist alongside Dubai UAE and Eidfjord Norway.
“Geraldton has really promoted itself as a destination of choice for cruise ships and we’ve worked hard to foster relationships to ensure we are on the radar,” Mayor Van Styn added.
“Our dedication to promoting cruise-tourism is very apparent as we will have our first over-night stay from a cruise ship in December.
“With our recent acquisition of four shore tension units by Mid West Ports Authority Geraldton is now known as a ‘safe port’ and we are able to have ships berth in Port instead of anchoring in Champion Bay, which is definitely a draw card.”
Several years ago Mid West Ports Authority and the City of Greater Geraldton created a joint initiative by recruiting a Cruise Ship Officer to develop and grow the cruise ship industry in Geraldton. This imitative was a first in Western Australia.
The Awards will take place on 19 September 2018 at the Seatrade Cruise Med in Lisbon Portugal.
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