Economy

Tianjin to become yachting and cruise liner hub

By Zhang Jia and Wang Yu (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-11-15 14:22

Two cruise liners arrive at Tianjin International Cruise Home Port. The newly-built port is expected to have hosted a total of 100 luxury cruise liners by 2015 with an estimated 250,000 to 300,000 passengers on board, according to the municipal government. [Photo/China Daily]

BEIJING - As an appointed economic center for North China, Tianjin is gearing up efforts to develop its fledgling but promising cruise and yacht tourism industries, which some expect to become the biggest in Asia.

As the largest home port in Asia for cruise liners following investment of 1.28 billion yuan, Tianjin International Cruise Home Port is expected to have hosted a total of 100 luxury cruise liners by 2015 with an estimated 250,000 to 300,000 passengers on board, Tianjin's tourism chief said. The Home Port has been on stream since June this year.

"The cruise industry has become one of the robust growth engines of world tourism. As an international port city, an appointed economic center and tourist city for North China with 153 kilometers (km) of coastline, Tianjin has exceptional resources to develop the cruise tourism industry. Cruise tourism has gradually become a major feature and new growth engine of Tianjin tourism," said She Qingwen, head of Tianjin Tourism Bureau.

Tianjin International Cruise Home Port lies at the south end of Dongjiang Bonded Port Area. The overall planning area is 120 square kilometers (sq m), with 1,600 meters of coastline and six multi-functional berths. It has the capacity to accommodate the largest luxury cruise liner in the world. Up to now, the Home Port has received 22 international luxury cruise liners, with 60,000 inbound and outbound passengers.

In addition, Tianjin plans to invest 9 billion yuan to build the largest yacht port in the country with the eventual goal of building up the biggest yacht industry base in North China, said Zhang Aiguo, chairman of the Administrative Committee of Dongjiang Bonded Port Area.

It will be created at Dongjiang Bonded Port Area in Tianjin Binhai New Area (TBNA) and will cover an area of 900,000 sq m holding 750 berths to accommodate luxury yachts about 90 meters in length. Local officials said the port would cost 9 billion yuan ($1.34 billion). So far, three yacht club projects have been developed in TBNA, costing a total of 10.5 billion yuan.

Once completed, the yacht port hub within the Dongjiang Bonded Port Area will have the capacity to accommodate 700 yachts, said Yu Rumin, chairman of Tianjin Port (Group) Co Ltd.

"In addition to efforts to further drive up our core marine transport business, we will step up efforts to build Tianjin Port into a booming cruise and yacht tourism hub," Yu said.

Tianjin International Cruise Home Port will be able to host 500,000 people a year. This year it received 60,000 tourists.

Apart from the construction of facilities, Tianjin Port is poised to make a breakthrough in broadening yacht tourism routes and introducing more cruise liner companies.

"From the yacht ports in Hong Kong, visitors are able to sail to the Philippines and Malaysia. We hope the yacht ports in Tianjin could explore this hobby, developing convenient sailing routes between the Chinese mainland and neighboring countries such as the South Korea," Yu said.

A slew of national policies have been newly issued to promote the development of the cruise tourism economy. Foreign cruise liners are allowed to affiliate with several companies and establish sole proprietorship operational agencies in China. Some foreign cruise liner companies have an urgent need to establish legal business entities in China, according to Song Dexing, the director of the Water Transport Authority of the Ministry of Transport.

The cruise economy has been included in the 12th fiveyear plan of the TBNA. The TBNA government will establish corresponding preferential policies, such as establishing a cruise economic development special fund, creating a complete cruise service standard system, and regularly holding forums for the development of the international cruise industry.

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A yacht manufacturing base, a maintenance center, a trade center, yacht clubs, five-star hotels and top-class commercial facilities are under construction in the TBNA.

Industry experts say that the cruise industry will facilitate a general upgrading of Tianjin's economy.

China's yacht production capacity is now among the global top 10.

"In terms of travel equipment manufacturing, Tianjin has great advantages. Thanks to the allocation of resources and distribution of productive forces, Tianjin plays an irreplaceable role in the Bohai Rim Economic Circle," said Wu Wenxue, vice-president of the China Tourism Association and director of the planning and finance department of the China National Tourism Administration.