Due to the success of last year’s Auckland Heritage Festival and the continued support of the Ports of Auckland we are delighted to announce a series of public sailings will be available in September this year.

The hour-long, family-friendly tours will cruise through the commercial wharves, providing a close-up view of port operations.

The trip will also include a special stop at the Auckland Harbour Bridge, where the William C Daldy proved its might salvaging a runaway piece of the bridge during its construction in 1958. Click Here for the full story!

A detailed heritage commentary will also offer a unique insight into the history of the port and Auckland.

The development of the city and port over more than 160 years is a fascinating story.

Daldy has the capacity for 120 passengers which, if based on last years success will fill very fast!

The tours are free; however, a donation to the William C Daldy Preservation Society is appreciated.

The tours will be held at 11.00am, 1.00pm and 3.00pm on Saturday 18th and 25th of September during the Auckland Heritage Festival.

Click to Enlarge Image

A plan for an overseas passenger terminal on Captain Cook Wharf is being proposed as new figures suggest Queens Wharf will be stretched to accommodate the booming cruise ship business.

Architect Gordon Moller has suggested extending Captain Cook Wharf, east of Queens Wharf on the Auckland waterfront, and building a double-sided overseas passenger terminal to allow two ships to berth simultaneously.

His comments coincide with better-than-expected bookings for cruise ships and a message to Auckland to expect larger ships.

Cruise New Zealand chief executive Craig Harris said about 68 cruise ships were expected to visit Auckland this season, 90 next year and more than 100 bookings had already been confirmed for 2012.

Mr Harris said he had returned from the United States, where cruise lines said Auckland should expect larger ships of 320m to 330m carrying 3000 to 3500 passengers within five to seven years.

There were physical challenges coming up, he said, such as Queens Wharf being able to take ships of up to only 300m. One solution was to put a bollard out from Queens Wharf to accommodate the larger ships.

Mr Moller, who has worked on plans for the waterfront and designed the Sky Tower, said the west side of Queens Wharf was earmarked for expanded ferry services, leaving one berth for cruise ships on the eastern side.

One berth was the brief for the flawed Queens Wharf design competition, he said.

“That means you can’t put a second ship on Queens Wharf, so you are one berth short.

“My simple logic is you extend Captain Cook out to equal the length of Queens Wharf, you put a new terminal down the centre of the wharf with link bridges, extend the ferry terminal on the west side of Queens Wharf and you have public open space [on the remainder of Queens Wharf].”

Mr Moller said Marsden Wharf should be used for small vessels, such as tugboats; Bledisloe Wharf kept for port use and Quay St turned into a public promenade.

“Take the red fence [along Quay St] down and the whole thing begins to sing.”

Mr Moller’s comments coincide with plans by the Government and the agency designing the Super City to hand planning of the waterfront, including a new masterplan, to the unelected directors of a waterfront development agency.

The public will have limited input through the planning process and be locked out of other deliberations.

The Auckland City Council supports the establishment of the waterfront development agency to manage development, but believes that planning should be left to the new Auckland Council.

The council also wants Captain Cook and Marsden wharves and the connection to Bledisloe Wharf placed under the agency to ensure that a new masterplan for the waterfront takes a long-term perspective.

The two wharves are owned by Ports of Auckland.

The agency will own and manage the waterfront – excluding Ports of Auckland land – from Teal Park in the east to the Auckland Harbour Bridge Park in the west, including Queens Wharf, the Viaduct Harbour, 18.5ha of publicly-owned land at the Tank Farm and Westhaven Marina.

Meanwhile, plans to spruce up Queens Wharf as “party central” for the Rugby World Cup are still several weeks away.

By Bernard Orsman | Email Bernard

Royal Caribbean Cruises wants certainty ahead of flash facilities as the cruise ship superpower expands its presence in New Zealand.

Royal Caribbean Australia managing director Gavin Smith said the company had followed the debate over plans for Queens Wharf – which included turning it into “party central” for the Rugby World Cup and building a modern terminal for cruise ships.

“We’d be more interested in a third berth than a redeveloped, integrated destinational facility because we want the flexibility to be able to see three ships in here regularly,” Smith said.

“We want to know with great certainty that there’ll be a wharf, whether it’s got restaurants and shops and cafes is less material.”

Infrastructure development was a sensitive issue around the world as the cruise industry grew both in volume and the size of its ships, he said.

“What the cruise industry would struggle to do is if the Government spent $50 million redeveloping the pier and then said we’re going to quadruple your costs.”

Auckland was one of the few ports in the world still offering a downtown wharf, which was very attractive to customers, Smith said.

“Because they can turn up, see the port immediately and they can purchase all the touring programmes without having to spend an hour on a bus to get there.”

Royal Caribbean, which is listed in New York and Oslo, said it was opening a dedicated office in Auckland to cater for the growing number of New Zealanders taking cruise holidays.

The company said that according to the International Cruise Council nearly 40,000 New Zealanders took a cruise in 2008, up from 30,215 in 2007.

Smith estimated Royal Caribbean’s market share for New Zealand customers was about 12-13 per cent.

“It gives us a greater sense of ownership of that responsibility of taking New Zealanders overseas on holiday,” he said.

The new office was expected to be fully operational from April 1 and would support the commercial and operation activities of the company, which uses predominantly travel agents to re-sell its cruises.

“If you go into a travel agent there’s 3500 products and what we want to give is personality to that.”

The company would introduce a second ship to the region towards the end of next year and expected to bring about 25,000 visitors to New Zealand in 2011, compared to about 10,000 this year, he said.

New Zealanders taking a Royal Caribbean cruise would still have to fly to Sydney to join their ship but the company could eventually board passengers in Auckland.

“In an ideal world we will further expand to have product that originates out of New Zealand, out of Auckland, and I would hope that we’re able to make announcements to that effect in the coming months,” Smith said.

By Owen Hembry | Email Owen

Public debate about the future of Queens Wharf and its merits as a party venue have obscured the fact Auckland needs an effective cruise ship terminal and the massive economic benefits such a terminal will generate, not just for the city but for all New Zealand.

Also lost has been the reality that such a terminal need only occupy less than a quarter of the available space on the wharf and much of this space can be on an upper level, as part of a multi-purpose structure.

Its cost will represent perhaps half of the overall spending being mooted to develop the wharf.

What is at stake is the ability for Auckland to become a transit terminal for the cruise industry in New Zealand, an activity that will add an estimated $125 million a year to the city’s gross domestic product and see a similar amount distributed among the 14 other transit ports, or ports of call, around the country.

Auckland is the only port in New Zealand that has the capacity to be a transfer terminal, and with that status comes the multiple economic benefits, including jobs, that come from people passing through the airport, staying overnight in hotels, using taxis and buses, eating in restaurants and spending in shops.

Overseas cities which gain the most from the cruise industry, with Vancouver a good example, have a three-way investment in the needed infrastructure: an international airport, an efficient cruise terminal and a large conference centre.

Such facilities are needed to handle thousands of people at a time who want to have a relatively seamless arrival, hotel stay and departure, an experience that will see them return and recommend our city to others.

That is an important factor because many people are hooking on their cruising holidays. Logically that means having the ability to check in bags at a downtown venue and having heavier items checked directly through from aircraft to ship and vice versa.

The current season will see 118,000 passengers visit Auckland. Next year 132,000 visitors are projected, with cruise passengers making up the fourth largest sector of international arrivals.

The arrival of new cruise lines committing to Auckland means that the 2012 season will see more than 100 cruise ship visits, with total passengers exceeding 200,000 people, plus some 80,000 crew. Across New Zealand these numbers equate to around 600 port visits.

Auckland will really struggle to cope with this growth using its current port infrastructure.

The cruise lines want some planning certainty. As a city we must be able to assure them that we can provide adequate international airline capacity and suitable hotels. Cruise ships vary from three-star to five-star standards, so available hotel accommodation needs to match this need.

They also want suitable berths and terminals and the ability to turn ships around efficiently. What we currently offer is Queens Wharf, with its multiple inefficiencies and weather-related problems, and the non-purpose-built facility on Princes Wharf, which the cruise industry has now outgrown.

Queens Wharf can accommodate 310m vessels on its eastern side and accommodate all current and expected ships, with the exception of the QM2 at 350m (one of only five or six vessels in the world of this size).

However, these ships could be accommodated with the addition of a concrete dolphin (a concrete tower with a bollard on top) some 20m off the end of the wharf.

The economic prize available to Auckland and New Zealand is substantial, but there is a real risk that inaction may see it evaporate, along with all the interest and vibrancy that comes to the city by virtue of it having cruise ships anchored at the foot of Queen St, something that is a distinct advantage in terms of the passenger experience the city can offer.

A terminal at the foot of Queen St also provides an easy link with ferry, bus and rail services, with benefits of that including changing the economics of a rail link between Britomart station and the airport.

As a terminal option, Bledisloe Wharf fails to meet that objective. It can also be discounted because its use as a terminal will require the demolition of Marsden Wharf, overcoming the fact that it is 50m shorter than Queens Wharf and that substantial hard rock blasting will be required to achieve the required depth at the Quay St end of the wharf.

Its use for cruise ships will also impact on the working needs of Ports of Auckland.

The cruising industry people that I deal with often make the point that cruising is an internationally transferable business and that a country is either cruise-friendly or it’s not.

The issue of friendliness aside, some of these decision-makers may be starting to wonder whether Auckland is really interested in securing their ongoing business, given the debate over the Queens Wharf terminal is now some three years’ old.

* Craig Harris is chairman of Cruise New Zealand, which markets NZ as a cruise destination to shipping lines.

By Craig Harris

The Queens Wharf design competition has been placed on hold while the project’s three sponsors, the New Zealand Government, Auckland Regional Council and Auckland City Council review the timing and scope of the development.

Govt considers short-term Queens Wharf revamp

By Edward Gay and Bernard Orsman at NZ Herald

A short-term solution to revamping Queens Wharf could be on the cards if Auckland cannot get its act together.

Prime Minister John Key said a short-term option is being looked at and could cost between $15 million and $20m but half of that will be capital expenditure which can be used in the final design.

He said the wharf was an important part of Auckland’s waterfront and the design needed to reflect that.

“If it is in fact too rushed to reach a conclusion on a quality development for the site in the long-term perspective then the Government will have no qualms about erecting a good short-term live-site solution for the Rugby World Cup,” Mr Key said at a press conference this afternoon.

He said the Queens Wharf was important both for the Rugby World Cup and the long-term development of Auckland, namely an international passenger terminal.

Meanwhile, a larger and more expensive revamp of Queens Wharf has been labelled a last-minute kneejerk reaction to the Rugby World Cup by Heart of the City chief executive Alex Swney.

“When are we going to stop and take a longer-term view on the way we develop our city?” he asked.

Rugby World Cup Minister Murray McCully is pressing Auckland leaders to adopt a grander vision for the historic wharf than was proposed in the much-maligned design contest dumped in November.

This would push the cost of redeveloping the wharf from $47 million at the design contest stage to about $100 million.

Auckland Regional Council chairman Mike Lee is keen to proceed with a cruise ship terminal in time for the cup if a new design appeals to the public.

He is at odds with Auckland City Mayor John Banks, who wants to spruce up the wharf for the cup and wait for the Super City when a plan can be put in place for the entire waterfront.

Mr Swney said the city needed to provide “party central” at Queens Wharf for the cup but also commit to a long-term masterplan.

“We need a plan that sees ports rationalisation, the freeing up of Bledisloe Wharf – a far superior site for a cruise ship terminal – and a plan that integrates the Tank Farm to the west with Queens, Captain Cook and Bledisloe wharves to the east,” he said.

Labour’s Auckland issues spokesman Phil Twyford said the Government’s determination to bully Aucklanders into an inadequate quick-fix solution seemed to be driven by Prime Minister John Key’s desire to create “party central” for the rugby cup.

“We are only 10 months away from a newly elected mayor and council for Auckland. It seems appropriate to wait to determine the future of the waterfront and cruise ship terminal until this occurs and decisions can be made in a democratic and accountable way,” he said.

Mr McCully said the Government explained in November an intention to step back, check the assumptions and look at all the options for Queens Wharf in conjunction with Auckland leaders early this year. He said some extra work had been done on the contest-winning design by architects Jasmax and Architectus. There were four or five other proposals on the table, but he declined to say what they were.

One option being considered by Auckland City Council is to spruce up Queens Wharf at a cost of $18 million, plus or minus $2 million, to provide services, safety, lighting and dress up the two 1912 cargo sheds for the rugby cup.

Mr McCully indicated the process was being driven by the need for a cruise ship terminal, expected to cost more than $50 million.

The other $50 million would be spent on strengthening the wharf and providing public open space. He said the cruise ship industry was worth $400 million a year.

By Edward Gay and Bernard Orsman

This sailing has been completed

W C Daldy was last years Winning Tug Boat!

VICTORIA WHARF, DEVONPORT, AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND
1 February 2010

• Depart Devonport 8am
• Depart Princes Wharf (Downtown) 9am
• Return Princes Wharf (Downtown) 12.30pm
• Return Devonport 1.15pm

PRICES:

• Adults $75
• Children $40
• Family (2 Adults, 2 Children) $200

All Prices include lunch of Sausage, Pattie, Kaiser Roll and Salad

A fabulous day on the water is promised as Auckland’s Waitemata Harbour comes alive in one of the world’s biggest one-day Regatta’s.

Contact Richard to book now

Ph: (09)445 9900
Fax: (09)445 6606
Mob: (021)659 800
E-mail: rosecentre@xtra.co.nz

More Details

Monday 1 February 9.00am: Tugboat Parade
Tugboats young and old will gather at the entrance to the Viaduct Harbour and parade up to their start line off North Head.

10.00am: Tugboat Race off North Head
Watch this amazing display of maneuverability and speed as these wonderful craft roar up the channel, round Narrow Neck Buoy and return to finish off Devonport Wharf – best vantage points are North Head, East Coast Bays beaches, Devonport and Devonport Wharf.

• 11.30am Firefighting display off the Viaduct followed by a Parade through the Viaduct.
• 11.00am: First Start off Princes Wharf

Races start off Princes Wharf, Downtown Auckland at 5 minute intervals from 11.00am.

• 11.35 & 11.45am: Classic division starts
• 11.55am: Tall Ships and Waka start
• 12.00noon: Harbour Blast starts off Orakei Wharf

See some of the fastest boats on the water ‘blast’ off in a vision of colour and speed as they head off around the harbour

MAERSK DETROIT (2005/54771gt/IMO 9297864, 5042TEU, 294.1m loa, ex-SANTA PELAGIA) arrives in in Auckland, 12 December 2009 following two days on a gulf anchorage, is the largest container ship to date to call at a New Zealand port. With a 5042TEU capacity she has approximately 23% greater TEU capacity than the former P&O Nedlloyd Albatross-class vessels which came online earlier this decade. Those vessels are now mainly incorporated in Maersk’s extensive worldwide fleet.

Date: 12 December 2009

Photographer: SeapixOnline.com

P&O Cruises’ Pacific Pearl will be re-christened in the Waitemata Harbour next year.

P&O Cruises plans to base its newest superliner in New Zealand. The 1800-passenger Pacific Pearl will be re-christened in the Waitemata Harbour on December 19, 2010. Auckland will be the ship’s home port and from here it will travel to Australia and the Pacific Islands. Craig Harris, chairman of Cruise NZ, said basing the Pacific Pearl in Auckland “is a real coup for New Zealand”. He said the industry already had bookings for the 2010 summer season and expected around 135,000 passengers. Mr Harris said cruise passengers were the fourth-largest group of inbound travellers.

Ann Sherry, CEO of Carnival Australia and New Zealand, said it chose New Zealand as the base because the country was driving much of the company’s growth. “Cruising has proven remarkably recession-resistant. As the world economy starts to recover, I believe we are in for sustained growth,” she said. “If New Zealand is to capitalise on that growth, it needs the right infrastructure and planning in place.”

FACTS

Built: 1989, renovated for P&O in 2010.
Weight: 69,500 gross tonnes.
Length: 247 metres.
Width: 32 metres.
Decks: 11.
Speed: Maximum 21.5 knots.
Passenger cabins: 839.
Facilities: Three restaurants, six bars and lounges, spa, fitness centre and gym, two swimming pools, multi-level show lounge, cinema, casino, duty-free shopping boutiques. Click for images

The Auckland Heritage Festival has been a great success for both the Ports of Auckland and William C. Daldy Preservation Society!

A BIG THANK YOU to our passengers, the Ports of Auckland and to the volunteer crew members who went out of their way to make this a fantastic success with all sailings fully booked!

Over the weekends of September 19 to October 3, the Daldy ran Saturday trips around the Ports of Auckland wharves and to the harbour bridge as part of the Auckland Heritage Festival. The Ports of Auckland chartered Daldy Megan & Debbie from Ports of Auckland, Jessica-Lee and our own Barry Parsons gave the commentary during the sailings for these trips to give people a closer look at the Port and provided a commentary on its history.

All trips had a full complement of about 120 passengers plus crew and we threaded in and out of the wharves, the commentators explaining the development of the Auckland Harbour and each wharf’s history and use. As we went up past the harbour bridge, the passengers were told about Daldy’s part in the construction of the bridge.

From comments made by the passengers, they thoroughly enjoyed hearing about the Port and the experience of being on an operating steam tug which has been part of the Port of Auckland’s history.

Was there a down side to the three trips? We don’t think so! The crew worked really hard to make the trips enjoyable for the passengers and the William C Daldy gained a great deal of exposure that should help to raise our profile with the people of Auckland.

Below are some images taken from the Auckland Heritage Festival. All images are copyright to their respective owners.

[View with PicLens]

4:00AM Sunday Sep 20, 2009
By Jane Phare

Kiwis are following the trail of television’s gooey Love Boat and snapping up bargain cruises in the wake of a recession-driven slump in the American and European markets.

But industry figures warn that New Zealand ports need to invest in world-class facilities to keep pace with growing trade.

Executives from Carnival Australia – which runs P&O, the Princess ships and Cunard Line in New Zealand – say Kiwi ports must lift their game to handle the industry goal of one million passengers by next year.

August was a record month for P&O Australia, with 30,000 New Zealanders and Australians booking cruises.

P&O has extended Pacific Sun’s three-month New Zealand cruising season to four months next year. Bookings for the ship last month were 213 per cent up on August last year and family bookings rose 20 per cent. Carnival plans to bring a record 52,000 passengers to New Zealand in the coming season.

P&O chief executive Ann Sherry said to fully capitalise on growth, New Zealand needed the right infrastructure and planning in place.

Port owners, the Government and others in the industry all needed to play a part.

Carnival senior vice-president Jenny Lourey said the lack of sufficient infrastructure at New Zealand ports was a barrier to the future of the local cruise industry.

The country’s ports were not keeping pace with local demand for cruising and the number of ship visits.

Next February, three cruise liners will be in Auckland at the same time. The Europa will berth at Princes Wharf, where the Hilton Hotel’s conference venue will double as a passenger terminal, forcing the Dawn Princess and Clipper Odyssey to berth at ageing Queens Wharf with its makeshift facilities.

Plans are under way for an $85 million development of Queens Wharf, including a new passenger terminal, in time for the 2011 Rugby World Cup.

A spokeswoman for Prime Minister and Tourism Minister John Key said the Government had contributed $20 million to help secure Queens Wharf as a cruise ship terminal.

Flash facilities or not, Kiwis are already planning next year’s holidays, taking advantage of two-for-one deals and discounts of up to 70 per cent.

Jacqueline Unsworth, who has worked in the industry for 18 years, said cruising has “never been so cheap”.

“There are deals that I’ve never seen in the whole time I’ve been in the industry.”

A 28-night round-Australia cruise on the Sun Princess and Dawn Princess starts at $3000, down from $8500.

And many companies are offering two-for-one deals, such as a 17-night cruise from Italy to Florida for $2900, with the second person paying only $280 taxes.

Apart from offering good deals, the cruise industry has worked feverishly to change the impression that a blue rinse is the only qualification needed for the high seas.

Go Holidays’ cruise consultant Samantha Fowler has been taking her two young daughters on cruises since they were babies. The introduction of kids’ clubs and activities for older children meant more families were booking.

jane.phare@hos.co.nz

Source: NZ HERALD