Shipping companies hope that the winter season will finally bring the long-awaited total recovery of the sector, although the Port Authority of Las Palmas (APLP) points out that in summer it could reach figures close to those of 2019, with 90% of the fleet operating in Lanzarote.
Despite the gradual return of tourists to the island, which currently has 85% of the fleet in operation, 2022 began with a decrease in the number of cruise passengers, with 28,286 passengers in January and 23,364 in February, between 11,000 and 15,000 fewer cruise passengers than in December (39,238), according to published by the Data Center in Lanzarote. These data reflect the impact of the ómicron variant, which caused a rebound in cases in many countries such as Spain, but also in Germany, Lanzarote's main customer in the cruise sector.
"Some shipping companies could not leave due to the lack of passengers, who canceled their reservations due to the increase in infections," says Aitor Galán, delegate of the Port Authority in Lanzarote. However, the port of Lanzarote was among the ports with the highest influx of cruise ships in Spain in January, together with Gran Canaria and Fuerteventura.
From the APLP insist that this is a specific drop and that the numbers are very positive if compared with those of 2021, when only 4,355 passengers arrived in January and 4,044 in February, 500% fewer cruise passengers than in 2022. A recovery marked by the end of coronavirus restrictions in the Canary Islands, such as the elimination of capacity limits and quarantines, which put the sector in check in 2020 with only 20% of the shipping companies in operation.
But if we talk about total recovery, the commercial director of the APLP, Juan Francisco Martín, points out that this could come during the 2022/23 winter season, where pre-pandemic numbers could be reached (65,319 in January and 54,212 in February 2019), which practically double those recently reached.
However, the uncertainty associated with the invasion of Ukraine remains latent, which could lead to complications for the sector due to the constant increases in fuel prices.
