Visitors Cruise Into Sydney To A Warm Welcome

A team of trained volunteers will welcome thousands of visitors arriving on 153 vessels in Sydney Harbour during the 2012 cruising season.

With Sydney’s iconic harbour as the backdrop, the volunteers will “meet-and-greet” as many as 13,000 visitors on cruise ships docking at the Overseas Passenger Terminal (OPT) between January and mid-April.

Destination NSW, Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority and the City of Sydney are working in partnership to deliver the service.

Meet-and-greet volunteers will be handing out The Official Sydney Guide and a one-page flyer with information on events being held in Sydney during the month the cruise ship arrives.

The City of Sydney will also have a pop-up stand in the OPT and will ensure the Circular Quay Visitor Information Kiosk is open early to complement the meet-and-greet service for early-morning cruise ship arrivals.

Destination NSW contacted inbound tour operators prior to Christmas advising them of the meet-and-greet service.

Thirty-three cruise ships are expected to visit Sydney in February alone, including the Cunard Line’s Queen Elizabeth on her second world voyage, arriving on 28 February carrying over 2000 passengers.

International cruise ship visits contributed $974.7 million to the Australian economy in 2010-11, up nearly 19 per cent on the previous year.

NSW benefits from the largest economic impact from the cruise ship industry over double all other states. Boasting two world-class cruise terminals on Sydney Harbour, the cruising industry pumped about $814 million into the NSW economy last year.