FAVOURITE DESTINATION: Kochi has become a favourite destination for cruise-liners hosting hundreds of high-spending passengers.

KOCHI. Kochi is becoming a preferred port of call in South Asia for cruise ships from around the globe. Seven ships will arrive in Kochi this month.

Cruise-liners hosting hundreds of high-spending passengers choose Kochi to ports such as Mumbai and Chennai owing to its proximity to the international shipping route. Besides, there are numerous tourist attractions in Fort Kochi, Kochi city and nearby Alappuzha

Aimed at luring more cruise liners, the Cochin Port Trust offers 33 per cent discount on berthing charges. Following steps taken to speed up Emigration and Customs checks, passengers can now disembark from cruise vessels within a few minutes of the ship calling at the port.

Port Trust sources said two of the world's biggest cruise ships — Queen Elizabeth II and Queen Mary — are expected to call at Kochi in March. We expect 30 to 35 cruise ships this tourist season. Last year, 22 vessels called at Kochi, carrying over 11,000 passengers and 6,000 crew. The high-spending tourists are a boon to ground-handling agents, tour operators, antique sellers, hotels and others associated with the tourism industry. Unlike most ships that remain berthed in Kochi from dawn to dusk, Island Sky was anchored here for two days last year.

Cruise terminal

More vessels are expected to call at Kochi once the proposed cruise terminal comes up near the Ernakulam Wharf. The agency to conduct the feasibility study for the project will soon be identified.

An estimated Rs. 55 crore will be spent in the first phase of the public-private partnership project. The Union Ministry of Shipping had over a year ago permitted the Port Trust to undertake the cruise-terminal project.

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