Residential luxury cruise ship The World arrives in Busan on Friday

City taps first-of-its-kind round-the-clock terminal to drive nighttime tourism spending

The World, a residential luxury cruise ship operated by US-based The World Residences at Sea, arrives at Sokcho port on Tuesday. [Gangwon Province]
The World, a residential luxury cruise ship operated by US-based The World Residences at Sea, arrives at Sokcho port on Tuesday. [Gangwon Province]

Since Busan became the first city in South Korea to operate a cruise terminal around the clock this year, five overnight cruise vessels have called at the port, with two more sailings scheduled for September — a sign that extended-stay cruise calls are gaining momentum.

With restrictions on terminal operating hours lifted, cruise tourists can now explore Busan freely at night. The city is working to channel that freedom into spending on nighttime tourism, dining, shopping and cultural attractions.

The arrival of The World, a residential luxury cruise ship, on Friday is expected to become a showcase for how the 24-hour terminal can translate tourist stays into local spending. The vessel will remain in Busan for three days and two nights.

Busan city and the Busan Tourism Organization plan to use the call as a live test of extended-stay tourism, giving passengers a chance to experience "Busan by night and by day." A tourist information desk will operate aboard the ship so passengers can venture out safely in the evening as well as during the day, with one-stop tailored information covering taxis, currency exchange, shopping and mobile connectivity for independent travelers.

On Saturday, the city will offer interested passengers aboard The World a guided nighttime outing to Gwangalli Beach, combining a drone light show with sightseeing in the surrounding area so cruise visitors can take in Busan's seaside after dark.

The round-the-clock terminal operation — which extended what had been a daytime-only port call experience into the nighttime hours — was made possible in part through cooperation among the Busan Port Authority and agencies responsible for immigration, customs and quarantine.

Moving beyond simply handing tourists a list of attractions, the city is bundling nighttime outings, customized individual itineraries, dedicated transport, local dining and performances, and onboard tourist information into a single extended-stay program, aiming to diversify the range of port-call tourism products on offer.

Following its support for The World's call, the city plans to provide special nighttime performance content for the Azamara Pursuit, an overnight cruise ship arriving Sept. 24, continuing to expand extended-stay tourism that lets cruise visitors experience Busan after dark.


kaf2002@heraldcorp.com