Port of Cork plans moving all cruise ship traffic to Cobh

The Port of Cork is contemplating moving all cruise liner traffic docking in Cork into a new berth in Cobh and utilising the rail connection there to offer passengers more shore excursions around the city and county.

Port chairman John Mullins said at present if two cruise ships dock in Cork at the same time one of them has to berth in Ringaskiddy, which doesn’t have a rail link. He said yesterday, as the last cruise liner of the season docked in Cork, that Ringaskiddy was becoming busier in terms of container business and it made sense to plan for an enlargement of the deep water quay in Cobh to ensure it could take two liners at a time.

“Ringaskiddy is not ideal for cruise ships and it is critical to get passengers in and out of areas quickly for shore excursions,” said Mr Mullins, adding that port officials were working closely with Irish Rail and Cork City Council to offer tailor-made all-inclusive excursions in the years ahead.

“There are a great amount of activities and attractions on offer in Cork and the region for cruise passengers, and we remain fully committed to increasing our (liner) calls from 62 this year to 80 in the next five years. To do this, we need the continued support of Irish Rail to offer more trains with added incentives, the tour operators need to design and offer new shore excursions at competitive prices and we need the continued support from both city and county councils to encourage the promotion of the region, so that everything Cork has to offer is utilised to its full potential,” the port chairman said.

Mr Mullins said that Irish Rail had provided many special trains in recent years to bring people to and from cruise ships.

According to Irish Rail up to 28% of liner passengers took the train from Cobh to Cork City this year.

“For all of the larger liners, Irish Rail offers extra trains to ensure passengers can get to Cork City without delay. This works well for passengers, with many deciding to take the train from Cobh to Cork in the morning and spend the afternoon in Cobh or take one of the ship’s shore excursions in the afternoon,” Mr Mullins said.

He said the rail company could play an important part in helping to provide all-in package excursions, with stops at Fota, the Jameson Experience in Midleton and Cork City.

“We are already working with the city council on providing walking tours of Cork for cruise line tourists,” Mr Mullins said.