Resorts World Cruises Genting Dream docking at Penang’s Swettenham Pier Cruise Terminal. — Photos: CHAN BOON KAI/The Star
Port commission working to further increase international passenger numbers to boost tourism industry in Penang
PENANG’s cruise industry looks promising this year with the Swettenham Pier Cruise Terminal (SPCT) recording an increase in ship arrivals in the first quarter of 2024.
Penang Port Commission (PPC) chairman Datuk Yeoh Soon Hin said the terminal received 473,517 cruise passengers as of April 23, compared with the same period last year during which 402,268 passengers arrived.
SPCT is the state’s sole and Malaysia’s leading cruise ship docking facility built in 2010 with capacity for 12,000 people.
Speaking at a recent media conference at the PPC head office in SPCT, George Town, Yeoh said the 17.71% increase painted a positive outlook.
The port wants to increase the variety of cruise liners and passenger arrivals to further boost Penang’s lucrative cruise vacation and related sectors.
He said that although PPC set a forecast of only 1.3 million passenger arrivals for this year, the commission predicted 883 port calls this year compared to 857 registered in 2023.
Penang port, he pointed out, had already received confirmed bookings of 161 port calls from international vessels since the start of 2024.
“Among the key highlights of the arrivals is that of the Spectrum of the Sea on June 28 and the maiden visit of Anthem of the Sea on Oct 13,” revealed Yeoh, adding that the port aimed to attract various cruise lines to explore Penang’s lucrative cruise vacation sector, as a way of boosting tourism.
“I would like to encourage cruise lines all over the world to book port calls two or three years in advance,” he added.
Present during the media conference were PPC head of department (cruise operation and commercial technical services, cruise and ferry operations division) Mior Saifulnizam Mior Jamal, PPC head of the system and facilities services division Mohd Nizam Ismail and PPC’s member of board of directors Datuk M Samarajoo.
