MOBILE, Ala. (WALA) – Facing a $6 million hit in the coming fiscal year, city leaders are trying to find a new cruise ship to replace the Ecstasy when the Carnival vessel leaves town next month.
Carnival Cruise Line announced earlier this year that it planned to move the Ecstasy to Alaska, leaving the Mobile Alabama Cruise Terminal idle for a year. In October 2023, Carnival intends to replace the Ecstasy with the new Carnival Spirit. But that vessel will sail only for six-month stretches.
Mayor Sandy Stimpson’s chief of staff, James Barber, told FOX10 News that the city has had ongoing discussions with Carnival and other cruise lines for years about adding a second ship to the port. He said the coming temporary vacancy raises the urgency of those discussions but added nothing is imminent.
“I think it’s more due diligence at this point,” he said.
City Councilman William Carroll, who sits on the Finance Committee, said he does not know much about the efforts but supports them.
“They really haven’t discussed it with the council at length. … It will be nice if we could get a second ship for the time Carnival is away,” he said.
Some industry experts expressed doubt about the feasibility of landing another ship, however.
“No other cruise line has shown interest. … Carnival is the only option,” said Stewart Chiron, an analyst known as The Cruise Guy. “It’s not a first- or second-tier market. The fact that Carnival didn’t pull out entirely is amazing.”
It is not for lack of trying, Chiron said.
“Listen, the mayor there in Mobile has worked his tail off,” he told FOX10 News. “He’s worked very hard in order to try to meet with the cruise lines and try to persuade them, but it’s just not what is in the mass market.”
Chiron said Mobile has limitations that are hard to overcome. The airport is small with limited flights. The ships that have sailed from Mobile are older with less exciting destinations, and Chiron said the passengers tend to be lower spenders.
“If you look at the passengers that have been attracted to the ship sailing out of Mobile, I mean they’re not getting the higher fares, and the passengers aren’t going to larger destinations and the occupancies aren’t as high as what the cruise lines want,” he said.
Still, city leaders said they hope to keep the cruise terminal in use with another ship, and other opportunities, like Mardi Gras balls and weddings.
“We’re looking at filling that gap, not only with another cruise ship but also bringing in events,” said Joe Snowden, the city’s executive director of administrative services.
The city collects about $6 million a year from the $20-per-night parking fee and the passenger fees included with each ticket. That revenue pays back the money the city borrowed to build the terminal.
The impact of not having cruises goes beyond that, however. David Clark, president and CEO of Visit Mobile, said the cruise industry fills about 35,000 hotel rooms a year in Mobile County, with perhaps another 5,000 to 6,000 on the Eastern Shore.
“So, it’s a bit hit. But the good news is, you know, we’re getting another ship,” he said.
That ship, the Spirit, is bigger and newer than the Fantasy class ships that Mobile previously had. It will also have longer itineraries.
Clark said he believes Mobile has demonstrated its worth to the industry.
“We’ve proven time and time again we have the best drive market in Central America,” he said. “We’re the first port you get to. It’s easy to get here and it’s easy to leave and come back.”
Clark said he believes Spirit passengers will be more likely to come a day early and leave a day later following their cruises, pumping more money into the local economy.
Chiron said the Spirit represents a big opportunity for Mobile.
“I’m excited to see the results of the response to Carnival Spirit,” he said. “It is a nicer ship. It is a larger ship, much newer ship. It’s got a lot more to offer than what the people of Mobile have had in the past. … I just hope that they’re able to attract higher occupancies and higher fares than what has been done in the past with the Fantasy Class ships.”
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