honoluluadvertiser.com

Sponsored by:

Comment, blog & share photos

Log in | Become a member
The Honolulu Advertiser

Posted on: Saturday, January 19, 2002

Cruise line may alter port calls

By Katherine Nichols
Advertiser Staff Writer

A possible shift by Norwegian Cruise Line of its neighbor island ports of call has sent waves of concern through merchants concerned they may miss out on potential 2,200 customers each week.

Much to the displeasure of retailers in Kona, Norwegian Cruise Line announced Thursday that it will call at Hilo on Monday to test "the operational feasibility of Hilo as an alternative to Kona when inclement weather prohibits Norwegian Star from calling there."

NCL is also evaluating the practicality of using Kahului instead of Lahaina on Maui.

The reasons for the possible changes are related to efficiency and weather. Getting passengers safely ashore has become increasingly difficult on a tight schedule that limits the ship's time in Hawai'i ports because federal regulations require it to leave the country and sail nearly 700 miles south — about 45 hours each way — to Fanning Island in the Republic of Kiribati.

In addition, high winds and rough seas occasionally have restricted the Star's ability to tender passengers in small boats when calling at Kona and Lahaina, where the Star must anchor outside the harbor.

Consequently, NCL has evaluated calling at Hilo and Kahului, where the ship can dock and passengers can walk ashore.

Merchants understand the explanations. But they know they will feel the sting.

Chelsey Tanoai, manager at Crazy Shirts in Kailua said she noticed a difference last Monday when the Star skipped Kona in a preliminary run to Hilo.

"It's definitely a sad situation for us," said Tanoai, who said that when the Star calls at Kona, business increases by 35 percent.

Ed Enos, a harbor pilot who works with captains to dock ships in all Hawai'i harbors, said Hilo is a safe bet and increases the Star's chances for schedule integrity. "(The weather) has to be pretty bad not to go into Hilo," said Enos.

Using Kahului instead of Lahaina as a port of call on Maui is a tentative but much discussed possibility among merchants in Lahaina.

"Really no decisions have been made (about Kahului); however they are looking at Kahului as an alternative if weather and sea conditions make tendering impractical at Lahaina," said Steve Hirano, spokesman at Pacific Management Consultants Inc., a company that handles community relations for NCL.

"We'll fight to keep the ships here," said Donna Soares, general manager of The Wharf Cinema Center in Lahaina, which has more than 50 shops and restaurants.

When a ship calls, said Soares, business jumps about 30 percent. She also expressed concern about marketing problems that might result from avoiding the historic small town.

"What about the passengers? They bought Lahaina, and I honestly believe that was a selling point for NCL," she said. "Why would they want to pull into a commercial harbor?"

When asked how passengers who had booked the cruise based on stopping at Kona or Lahaina might react when notified of last-minute changes, Hirano said, "It creates a different set of problems, but (NCL is) aware of it."

Maui Divers Jewelry is preparing to open a fourth store in the Lahaina-Ka'anapali area to take advantage of the growing cruise ship business.

Bob Taylor, president and chief executive officer, works closely with NCL. He has committed advertising dollars to the ship, which augments his concern about the possibility of a switch to Kahului, about an hour's drive from Lahaina.

"That one hurts us because we don't have a store there," said Taylor. "We have voiced our disappointment."

Still, NCL has its reasons for investigating a change.

In addition to the usual tendering and weather issues that result from anchoring, NCL has asked the state Department of Land and Natural Resources to use Maui as a destination port.

That means passengers can start and end their cruise either in Honolulu or Maui. But with this new option comes the problems of loading and off-loading provisions as well as an estimated 200 people and their luggage, said David Parsons, who handles boating and special projects for DLNR's division of boating and ocean recreation.

DLNR granted "tentative approval under certain conditions" to use Lahaina or Kahului as a start and end point, said Parsons. But security is a concern, and it's easier to abide by stringent port security regulations using the existing facility left in Kahului by American Classic Voyages.

Efforts to facilitate tendering in Kailua-Kona and Lahaina are already under way. A $3 million pier improvement project has been authorized in Kailua-Kona, said Parsons. This would add three landings to the one already present.

Plans are also moving along for the reconstruction of a new pier in Lahaina that would double the space available to tenders.