TheBuzz
TheBuzz
Coastal cruise businesses are among the Hawaii visitor attractions working to replace revenue lost to the tourism downturn and, in some cases, increased security. Isle cruise businesses
trolling for replacement
revenue ideasParadise Cruise Ltd. was forced to discontinue tours of Pearl Harbor, losing the company a chunk of income. The lion's share of company revenue is generated through dinner cruise business, according to spokesman Bill Bigelow. But the revenue stream from the Pearl tour "went from what it was to zero."
Increased security also kept Dream Cruises Inc. out of Honolulu Harbor, for a time. "But the (state) harbors folks have been really helpful in enabling us to contact traffic control and get permission, in bad weather, to get off the ocean into protected waters," said Vice President for Sales Frank Alexich.
Each company is doing what it can to reinvent or re-tread its revenue-generating wheels.
Paradise Cruise has augmented its daily 9:30 a.m. "Diamond Head Odyssey" cruise with additional activities and extra time for passengers to snorkel with turtles and reef fish. Windsurfing, kayaking and filling up at an "all-you-can-drink" soda bar are some of the activities added to the cruise aboard the Starlet, which also offers a water slide, giant trampoline and water toys.
Dream Cruises Inc. was the first to offer a giant water slide from its second deck as well as "huge aqua logs that attach to (its) giant trampoline," Alexich said.
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The company in late summer added "snuba" to its "Pacific Splash Barefoot Fun Cruise" in which "all the scuba equipment is on a raft." Passengers are connected to the scuba equipment by a 20-foot hose and led on a guided tour of the reef by a certified dive master.Since Sept. 11, Dream Cruises has "tried to be more creative with our travel partners," in establishing discounted rates for visitors, Alexich said.
"A lot of folks are traveling on a budget with discounted air fares and hotel (rates) and they're less affluent, meaning they otherwise might not have been able to fly somewhere. They have less disposable income when they get here," he said, adding that the company has year-round kamaaina discounts.
Dream Cruise has also found a niche in serving school and other groups with special rates. "We send a marine naturalist to the students' classrooms in advance of their trip with an age-appropriate educational program," Alexich said. While not eminently profitable the company benefits from exposure to the childrens' parents.
Atlantis Adventures' Navatek ended its regular Pearl Harbor cruise two years ago, offering the tour only by private charter, according to Public Relations Coordinator Jonelle Garcia.
'Tis the season for most boat-tour companies to be jolly, however, with Humpback whales returning to the islands from about December through May. The Paradise Cruise, Dream Cruises and Atlantis Adventures Web sites detail the companies' offerings and prices.
"We get a ton of increased kamaaina business associated with whale watching," said Alexich. "And we're pretty well known, probably because of school parents."
Erika Engle is a reporter with the Star-Bulletin.
Call 529-4302, fax 529-4750 or write to Erika Engle,
Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., No. 7-210,
Honolulu, HI 96813. She can also be reached
at: eengle@starbulletin.com