Spirit of Discovery cruise ship docked Wednesday at La Goulette Port with 724 tourists on board. This is a first after a three-year disruption, Tourism and Handicrafts Minister Mohamed Moez Belhassen told the media.
Most of these tourists are from the UK, with a few from France, Germany and Spain, he added. Resumption of cruises is of paramount importance for Tunisian tourism as well as for the sectors of transport, handicrafts and culture, especially as cruise tourism is generally known for the good spending capacity of passengers and the particular interest they lend to culture and handicrafts.
An excursion programme was devised for these tourists in the Médina of Tunis, Kairouan, Sousse and the northern suburbs of Tunis, he added. A second cruise ship is expected next April, and a total of 40 cruises are scheduled in 2022.
The resumption of cruise tourism is the fruit of the joint efforts of the sectors of tourism, customs, transport and environment, Belhassen said.
Tourism indicators showed slight improvement in compaison with 2021, though not attaining the level seen in 2019. The goal set for 2022 is 50% to 60% of 2019 figures.
Director General of the cruising company Goulette Shipping Cruise (GSC) Sami Debbiche said this cruise signals the restart of cruise tourism after a 7-year interruption, except for a cruise in 2019. due to the 2015 attacks.
He further said 724 tourists and 500 crew members arrived Wednesday to Tunisia from the United Kingdom, including 400 tourists who headed to Sousse, Kairouan, La Medina and Sidi Bousaid, before leaving for Spain at 5pm.
The year 2020 was a reference year for cruises transiting through Tunisia with 400 cruise ships and 1 million tourists.
