By Luke Voogt
Corio Bay needs more infrastructure to improve cruise ship tourism, according to Geelong’s peak tourism body.
Tourism Geelong and the Bellarine deputy director Brett Ince made the comments as the Sirena Oceania dropped anchor in Corio Bay on Tuesday.
“We’re in the business of trying to encourage more cruise ships to come into Geelong,” he said.
“Whether it’s a Yarra Street pier or another proposition, any improved infrastructure could mean more opportunities for Geelong.”
The ship brought 680 tourists into the bay, Mr Ince said.
“The majority of those opted to stay in Geelong and explore the region.
“The ship was on a swing mooring out there – it’s a 10 to 15 minute trip in and out.”
The ship dropped anchor about 3am on Tuesday and passengers began disembarking between 7am and 8am. It departed at 6pm that evening.
The passengers enjoyed local attractions such as Geelong’s gallery and botanical gardens, and live sheep shearing at the National Wool Museum, Mr Ince said.
“It’s a short walk or shuttle bus to major attractions in Geelong which does give us a competitive advantage.”
Mr Ince said a new pier or improvements to Cunningham Pier would allow more ships to dock and make overnight stays in Geelong more likely.
“There is infrastructure which is needed for that,” he said.
“In the past there have been ships that have used (Cunningham Pier).”
He added that the state government would need to deepen the channel to the bay for bigger cruise ships to enter.
The City proposed building a pier at Yarra Street after the original burnt down in 1988 but shelved the idea.
The existing Cunningham Pier currently lacks the infrastructure for cruise ships to dock.
“If the city wants to take it they can get it for less than what it would cost for them to build a new one,” said Frank Costa, the pier’s owner.
“There’s also the peer out at Point Henry. That should be looked at – I believe it’s got potential.”
Costa Property Group chief executive officer Carl Shockman renewed calls for The City to improve Cunningham Pier.
“It’s something that should be done from a social standpoint for Geelong,” he said.
Mr Shokman said the city could build four dolphins, man-made marine structures above the water level, around the pier at an estimated cost of $2.5 million.
“That can be done for a very small sum compared to what they advocated for a Yarra Street Pier,” he said.
This would allow more ships to dock and increase cruise ship tourism, he said.
“It’s a no brainer. If you look at some of the research council been done for Yarra Street Pier it’s worth millions of dollars.”
But Mr Shokman said Costa Property Group would not build the dolphins because ship operators would not pay to dock.
“They know they’re bringing in millions of dollars of business and they don’t want to pay for anything – we’re not going to make any money out of it.”
Manager of investment and attraction Brett Luxford said the City would consider any cost-effective proposal to increase tourism.
“We recognise that visiting cruise ships offer great potential, and we already actively encourage those visits through our support of Tourism Geelong and the Bellarine,” he said.
