Sustainability is key for cruise

SUSTAINABILITY is set to be a key theme at Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) Australasia’s Cruise360 event in Sydney tomorrow.

CLIA Global’s president and ceo Cindy D’Aoust told Travel

Daily that while preserving the physical environment was clearly an important objective for the cruise industry, the concept of “sustainability” cast a wider net.

“It is also the culture of the destinations we are visiting we need to look after because if you ask people why they take the cruises they do, destinations tend to be the number one factor in choosing,” D’Aoust said.

“So we work with local mayors, local politicians, as well as all the tourism leaders to find out what the challenges are and the opportunities we have to work together for a better outcome.”

Part of the challenge of emboldening sustainability also extends to busting some common misconceptions surrounding cruising, according to CLIA Global’s svp, global strategic communications and research Megan King.

“The biggest myth to undo is that cruise is responsible for ‘unbalanced tourism’, and as ships get larger it’s very easy for people to point to them as the big billboard in the harbour for that issue,” King said.

“Cruise is only a small part of overall tourism – less than 2% - so that is not the reality but we also do have a big responsibility to the destinations we visit & if they are not a good place for the residents then they are not a good place for our guests either,” she added.

Pictured: CLIA Global’s president and ceo Cindy D’Aoust and svp, global strategic communications and research Megan King.