Cruise Ships To Make Fewer Holyhead Visits

by Sash Davies
(Wales)

Fewer cruise ships will visit Holyhead on Anglesey this summer, following the opening of a new special berth at the port of Liverpool.

Holyhead will suffer the disadvantage of not having state of the art docking facilities for cruise liners, but also due to Liverpool being the European Capital of Culture for 2008.

Clearly, this will be a major attraction for the thousands of cruising tourists mainly from North America who cruise around the waters of the British Isles during the summer months.

In 2007, 11 cruise ships visited Holyhead carrying approximately 15,000 passengers, but in 2008 this will be down to 5 ships and less than 4,000 passengers.

Estimates suggest over £1 million was spent in the north Wales economy by cruise liner tourists last year.

The weakness in Holyhead's case is that visiting ships have to anchor off Holyhead Breakwater and the Rio Tinto jetty.

Sometimes inclement weather causes delay for disembarking passengers who want to catch a coach to visit attractions as far away as Caernarfon Castle and even Llangollen.

Angelsey County Council want a berthing facility to be built at the port of Holyhead.

According to Crusie Ship Events co-ordinator Sue Thomas, they are confident this would boost visits to about 20 cruise ships every summer.

North West Wales including the island of Anglesy has many natural and historic island attractions for cruise ship visitors.

So investment in the port of Holyhead would pay solid long term dividends.

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