Brazil expects the cruise season to attract around 300,000 foreigners

Among the highlights of the period, from October 2022 to May 2023, are the long-distance ships, which depart from international destinations, stop in Brazil and follow their itineraries

Eight coasters, 35 long-haul ships and 674,000 berths available. This is how the 2022/2023 cruise season is designed in Brazil, which promises to be the largest in the last decade in the country, according to the Brazilian Association of Maritime Cruises, Clia Brasil. With an expected duration of almost six months -from October 2022 to May 2023-, the period should have around 330,000 arrivals of foreigners in the country.

Among the highlights of the next season are the returns of long-distance ships, which depart from international destinations, stop in Brazil and continue their itineraries. The action puts the country back on the route of major shipping companies from around the world after restrictions and border closures due to the pandemic, promoting international tourism.

"Cruises had an economic impact of R$ 2.2 billion in the 2019-2020 season and are a fundamental segment for the resumption of Brazilian tourism", highlights the president of Embratur, Silvio Nascimento. “We have immense potential to offer even more cruises on the Brazilian coast and attract more foreign tourists to discover the beauties of our coast. We are aligned with Clia Brasil for that”, he reinforces.

The expectation for the season is that eight ships will carry out 160 itineraries in the country starting on October 29. With 674 thousand beds offered to tourists, the forecast is that cruise ships will exceed the 2019/2020 mark and move R$ 3.3 billion (with cabotage ships) and R$ 1.6 billion (with long-distance ships). distance), with direct and indirect generation of around 43 thousand jobs in the country.

According to the president of Clia Brasil, Marco Ferraz, this season will continue an increase in cruise passengers on the Brazilian coast that had already been happening in 2019. “We were experiencing growth before the pandemic. Now we have a season with eight boats and almost six months of operation. It is cabotage season, with ships dedicated to our country. Apart from that, we have 35 long-distance ships, which have not been here since the 19/20 season, that will bring foreigners to our country. Counting all the boats, from small to large, we will exceed 280,000 possible landings”, says Ferraz. It is estimated that each landing on Brazilian soil generates an economic impact of around R$557 per day.

The eight ships that will be in Brazil this season are: Costa Firenze, Costa Fortuna, Costa Favolosa, MSC Armonia, MSC Musica, MSC Fantasia, MSC Seashore and MSC Seaview. They will depart from the ports of Itajaí (SC), Maceió (AL), Rio de Janeiro (RJ), Salvador (BA) and Santos (SP) and will travel through 160 itineraries and 486 stops in 17 destinations, including Buenos Aires, Montevideo and Punta del Este.

Camaraderie

Seeking to increasingly expand the promotion of the segment and attract foreign tourists to the country, Embratur, the Ministry of Tourism and Clia Brasil met on the 27th in Brasilia. The agenda revolved around the 2022-23 cruise season, with proactive discussions of possible alliances to increasingly boost interest in nautical tourism.

The meeting was attended by the president of Embratur, Silvio Nascimento, the Minister of Tourism, Carlos Brito, the president of Clia Brasil, Marco Ferraz, and representatives of cruise operators.

During the meeting, representatives of the companies that operate cruise ships in Brazil spoke about the opportunities to expand the national market and presented a list of points to work on to improve the performance of the activity, such as the improvement of embarkation and disembarkation conditions and adaptations to tax regulations.