HOPPER PRICE CHOPPER

Cape Bretoners get discount to ride Sydney’s Harbour Hopper.

The provincial regulator has approved an introductory discount for Cape Bretoners wanting to ride Sydney’s Harbour Hopper but it will only be in effect for the service’s first season, which is due to end at the end of the month.

Parent company Murphy Sailing Tours Ltd. applied for the discount Sept. 20 and it was granted by the Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board on Friday.

The 20 per cent discount applies to rates that vary by age.

The scenic tour of Sydney and its harbour by the amphibious vehicle began operating in September.

Terri McCulloch, communications manager for Ambassatours, said in an interview Tuesday it’s not uncommon for such a service to apply to offer a discount when entering a new market, to encourage local residents to give it a try. To take advantage of the discounted rate, Cape Bretoners will have to bring their ID with them.

The tours have been a longtime popular attraction for tourists and locals in Halifax.

“We just went into the market there in Sydney, so it was just a first blush, I guess you would say, at developing a new market, but we had a great experience, certainly, everybody was very welcoming,” McCulloch said.

The company hired a handful of local guides to conduct the tours in Sydney.

Cruise traffic represents an important market for the Harbour Hopper, which was part of the motivation for expanding into Sydney, McCulloch said.

The utility and review board decision notes that no objections were received in response to the application for the discount.

McCulloch said the company doesn’t yet have ridership numbers for the Sydney tours. Those numbers and questions such as the breakdown of local versus tourist clientele will be analyzed after the season ends, she said.

McCulloch did say guides indicated anecdotally that there seemed to be a good mix of local and visiting passengers.

At the time it was launched, Ambassatours indicated its plans were to eventually expand the Sydney Harbour Hopper tour from a single vessel and build the presence of the company to mirror the model in Halifax.

McCulloch said Ambassatours expects to offer Harbour Hopper tours in Sydney next year, but it’s too early to say whether it will be expanded.