The palace-style hotel is the venue for this year’s SCAP, taking place November 1-3, 2017, and not far from Wusongkou International Cruise Terminal(WICT), heralded as Asia Pacific’s busiest cruise terminal and now number four in the world.
Overseeing Royal Caribbean Cruises business in China, Dr Zinan Liu, spoke of a decade of fast growth in China and referred to the country’s cruising industry as ‘phenomenal’.
Liu said Chinese consumers are identifying cruising as a new concept for holidays and ‘we need to improve the customer experience on cruise ships sailing out of China.’
He talked about not making the product too Western but finding ‘the sweet spot’. He suggested, ‘we need to optimise instead of localise.’
Dr Liu praised the Baoshan government for its foresight in building infrastructure at Wusongkou to handle two megaships simultaneously. 'If there was no facility then nobody would be able to bring big ships to Shanghai,' he commented.
Driven by rising demand, Su Ping, deputy mayor of Baoshan District said by next year WITC will be able to handle four megaships at one time as construction of two new berths and two satellite terminals forges ahead.
The vice mayor of the Shanghai Baoshan People’s Government, a partner of SCAP 2017, said in 2016 the cruise terminal handled 471 cruise ships and 2.84 (embark/disembarking) passengers accounting for around half of the domestic cruise business.
He told the press conference that of China’s 11 homeports, 'Baoshan is the only one making a profit.'
Su added, 'It’s not just about handling ships, Baoshan is also developing a cruise industry park for attracting cruise line to establish local HQs, a supply chain network and distribution centre for cruise ship maintenance, produce and e-business platform for distribution.'
Opening the press conference Mary Bond, md publishing and content at Seatrade said,‘It’s no secret that growth in Asia is driving cruising’s success story worldwide with more, bigger and dedicated ships being deployed to the region as demand continues to rise.’
Citing latest CLIA figures she said, of the 3.1m Asians that cruised last year, 2.1m passengers were from mainland China - ‘It is no surprise that China is now the world's fastest growing major cruise source market moving up to the No. 2 source market globally in 2016, trailing only the US and ahead of Germany and the UK as source markets.’
Other major regional source markets were Taiwan, Japan, Singapore, India and Hong Kong, she added.
‘If you're looking to build connections, develop your knowledge or identify new business opportunities, Seatrade Cruise Asia Pacific is the perfect platform to gain an unrivalled insight into the cruise industry's most exciting region, Bond remarked.
With a team of experts, in-depth knowledge of the cruise industry in China, exceptional relationships with the cruise lines and an exclusive partnership with CLIA (Cruise Lines International Association), Seatrade promises to bring you an extremely successful event for our return to China in 2017,’ she said.
Subjects that will be covered in lively panel discussions include: Market overviews of North East Asia, Southeast Asia and Australasia looking at source market and deployment trends and asking where to next?; China’s Belt and Road initiative and how it might change global cruise travel market dynamics; Shipbuilding, design & repair; supply and procurement - creating a better and more efficient supply chain network across Asia; Port Infrastructure and Development in Asia; Itinerary Planning & Shorex innovations; an environmental sustainable cruise sector in Asia - and how cruise lines, ports, local and regional governments and authorities can work collaboratively and Safety & Security.
In addition, two sessions will be provided by Cruise Line International Association (CLIA): Itinerary Planning Workshop for registered delegates and Travel Agent Training.
Baoshan will also provide a range of panel discussions covering Cruise standardisation in China ports, the regulatory environment in China, Cruise Talent Forum, and Cruise Academic Forum.
On the opening day November 1, there will be an opportunity for delegates to participate in a visit to either:- Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding Yard and Huarun Dadong Dockyard or to see the Shanghai Wusongkou International Cruise Terminal.
Throughout the event, drinks and refreshments will be served in an area outside the conference rooms where local and international suppliers to the cruise industry will be showcasing their products.
