B.C.’s 2023 cruise ship season launches with hundreds of visits expected
Posted April 11, 2023 4:11 pm.
Cruise ship season has officially launched in B.C. as the Sapphire Princess berths in Victoria for a one-day visit.
The vessel is expected to travel to Vancouver to begin the season in that city Wednesday.
The Greater Victoria Harbour Authority says it expects 330 ships between April and October, bringing at least 850,000 passengers to the capital.
Meanwhile, the Port of Vancouver says 331 cruise ships are scheduled over the same period, potentially delivering more than one million visitors into the downtown core, with almost daily arrivals and departures at the height of the season between May and September.
Related article: Vancouver cruise season sees record number of ships in 2022
Prince Rupert’s cruise ship season doesn’t start until May 3 with the arrival of the Carnival Miracle, but 43 more ships and nearly 80,000 passengers are scheduled to visit before the season ends at that north coast port in early October.
Cruise ships returned to British Columbia last year following a two-year, COVID-19-related break, with the Port of Vancouver saying it welcomed a record 307 ships, a seven per cent increase over visits in 2019.
