Carnival Cruise Line President Christine Duffy hopes The Bahamas will delay the tax increases the country has proposed for the cruise sector, according to an article on the Travel Weekly website.
Duffy does explain during the interview that fees across all sectors are increasing, including for the hotel sector. However, she contended that The Bahamas' fee increase would likely hit budget travelers the hardest.
"There's a lot of development happening in The Bahamas, and we're working with the officials in The Bahamas to see if at least, can it get pushed out," Travel Weekly said Duffy said during an interview on Thursday onboard Carnival's new ship Venezia during its first voyage from New York.
Duffy added: "Look, if I'm on a budget, this is my budget. This is what I can spend. But I mean, look at resort taxes and resort fees. I don't want to say people have gotten used to it, but it has been piling on."
The government has proposed to increase the departure tax on passengers visiting Freeport and Nassau from $18 to $23. It has also proposed that passengers whose itinerary visits only a cruise line's private island will have to pay a tax of $25.
"The government also seeks to charge a $5 tourism environmental tax and a $2 tourism enhancement tax on each cruise passenger," the article outlines.
"The tourism enhancement tax is expected to go into effect on Jan. 1, 2024. All other taxes are expected to go into effect on July 1, 2023."
The article adds: "The higher tax comes after Nassau Cruise Port completed the first phase of a $300 million construction project, adding a new berth and completing other improvements and repairs. The port says that its daily capacity has increased from 20,000 to 30,000 passengers.
"Meanwhile, cruise lines have continued to develop private islands in The Bahamas. Carnival Corp. is building a pier at Half Moon Cay, which has long been accessed via tender boat, and an exclusive destination at Grand Bahama."
Nassau Cruise Port Limited (NCP) said in a press release last week that it still expects a one million increase in cruise passenger visits to Nassau between 2024 and 2028.
Click here to read more at The Nassau Guardian
