Halifax is booming with visitors today. Extra staff has been called in into work in many local businesses to help with the rush of visitors. Over 11,000 passengers are visiting Halifax as the Port of Halifax celebrates a record breaking week. Five cruise ships made their way into our beautiful city this morning.
Michelle Peveril from the Halifax Port Authority says that “despite the US recession, we are seeing roughly the same amount of passengers and cruise ships dock in Halifax when compared to last year. We are still on par with an estimate of 216,000 – 220,000 passengers.”
Earl and Cindy Pleasance from British Columbia travelled from coast to coast to visit Halifax. They were amazed by the historic richness of Halifax. “We’re only here for a few hours but we will certainly be back to explore Nova Scotia,” explains Cindy. The couple took a break from their shopping to observe Nova Scotian Crystal workers. Bumping into Canadian cruise passengers is a rarity. I’m told that 95% of visitors are actually American.
We might take it for granted when we see a ship arriving to our port or notice the city hopping, but the impact is phenomenal. The Port of Halifax estimates that the direct economic impact of the cruise ship season is $50 million. Restaurants, boutiques and museums are booming with visitors eager to learn about Halifax. “It’s not only Halifax that benefits,” adds Michelle, “but areas such as Lunenburg, Grand-Pré, and Peggy’s Cove have also seen an impact.”
See more pictures on Flickr
-Natalie Cormier is a senior Public Relations student at Mount Saint Vincent University. Natalie is currently a co-op student at Greater Halifax Partnership.
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