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Amy Powers 207-310-0998

CruiseMaine Marketing Program a Success

The popularity of Maine remains very strong with the cruise industry, according to Brian Nutter, Executive Director of the Maine Port Authority. In 2000 the state hosted 74 cruise ship visits, most of which were in the coastal resort community of Bar Harbor.

In 2002 the Authority undertook the effort to develop a branded marketing program to attract more cruise ship visits. A trial run of the program was tested at Seatrade in 2002 and after favorable reports the full effort was launched in 2003.

“We’ve had to make some carefully calculated moves to insure our limited budget was efficiently utilized,” stated Nutter. “But I feel our team has done a great job.” Statistics seem to hold this up as there are currently 201 ship calls scheduled for the 2006 season which runs from mid-May to mid-November. Nutter points out that, “ships are now calling in eleven different communities, and we have a couple more ports we are looking to unveil in the next few years.”

Ship calls in 2006 include visits from 15 different lines and include three scheduled visits from the Queen Mary 2 and one from her sister ship the Queen Elizabeth 2. “Every year we are setting new records,” says Nutter.

“In 2006 we’re looking at 14% growth over last year. That’s phenomenal.”
As work continues to promote additional ship calls, the Authority and its CruiseMaine marketing program, under the direction of Amy Powers, is also working with the various communities on issues of sustainable growth. “We recognize the importance of building this business, but we also see the importance of maintaining the character of the communities where the ships visit,” says Powers. “Our best selling tools are the beauty of our coastline and the quaint, unique, and historical ports of call. We cannot afford to lose the quality of the experience we offer.”

What does the future hold? When asked Nutter replied, “In the last five years we have more than doubled the number of ships calling in Maine. We’ve just broken the 200 mark. Personally, I’m starting to look very industriously at the 300 level.”

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