Bahrain halves port fees in an effort to lure back leery cruise lines
Skift Take
The Bahrain government is doing what it can to help offset the hefty insurance cost for ships calling on its main port. The fee break, while not able to offset the insurance, tells the industry that Bahrain feels its pain and wants to help.
Source: Gulf Daily News
Author: Mandeep Singh
Bahrain will halve port fees for cruise ships in a bid to lure back operators when the new season opens in October, sources told the GDN.
It was part of a raft of incentives agreed during a meeting in which tourism and maritime authorities pulled together to offset an increase in the cost of insuring vessels that dock here.
Tourism companies are offering discounts worth tens of thousands of dinars, while APM Terminals Bahrain which manages the Khalifa Bin Salman Port has reduced its charges for passengers from BD3 to BD2 each.
Meanwhile, passenger charges could be waived by the General Directorate of Nationality, Passports and Residence Affairs (GDNPR), which could act as a "sponsor" for each visitor arriving on a cruise.
The organisation will also continue to waive crew charges and will look into the potential of waiving other charges, ad
