The 2024 Destination NSW Cruise Ready Workshop series concluded this week in Sydney.

More than 180 visitor economy stakeholders joined the Destination NSW Product Development team and cruise industry experts for workshops held at cruise ports across the state.

The full-day sessions focused on maximising bookable experiences, including learning about the cruise distribution network, markets and demographics; how to create cruise shore excursions; and Destination NSW cruise resources and support.

Thank you to Port Authority of NSW, Australian Cruise Association and all our guests speakers for contributing to the success of the series.

Cruise shore excursions make a valuable contribution to growing the NSW visitor economy. According to data from Cruise Lines International Association each domestic cruise passenger spends on average $197 per day while in port.

Key findings from the CLIA 2023 Source Market Report for Australia include:

  • 1.25 million Australians took an ocean cruise during 2023, up from 1.24 million in 2019 and close to the all-time high of 1.35 million achieved in 2018.
  • NSW remained the biggest source of Australian cruise passengers (720,849, or 57.7 per cent).
  • Cruising’s market penetration rate in Australia was close to five per cent – almost one in every 20 Australians took an ocean cruise, one of the highest rates in the world.
  • The average duration of an ocean cruise taken by Australians in 2023 was 8.1 days, down from nine days in 2019, reflecting the rise in short-break cruises offered by cruise lines.
  • The average age of an Australian cruise passenger was 48.4 in 2023, down from 50.4 in 2019, reflecting the increasing popularity of cruising among younger generations.
  • The number of overseas visitors who cruised in Australia/New Zealand/South Pacific during 2023 was 217,000, a similar level to 2019.
  • At 1.25 million passengers, Australia was the world’s fourth largest cruise market in 2023, behind the United States (16.9 million), Germany (2.5 million) and the United Kingdom (2.2 million).