The Hamburg Cruise Days 2017: happy visitors, high added value for the city

Around 500,000 visitors came to the waterfront in Hamburg to celebrate the Hamburg Cruise Days. What was even more fantastic was just how satisfied they were with the event, as the results of a visitor survey reveal. The survey was commissioned by the Hamburg Convention Bureau in order to assess the relevance of the Hamburg Cruise Days for Hamburg.

The results are very gratifying for the organisers and they are also solid proof of the appeal of the Hamburg Cruise Days’ concept: around 90 per cent of those interviewed were satisfied or very satisfied with the event, 65 per cent would return next time. On average, visitors spent between six and seven hours at the event. One third were repeat visitors who had been to the Hamburg Cruise Days two or multiple times; for 66 per cent it was their first time.

The event also succeeded in its aim of attracting visitors who are interested in cruises and stimulating their desire to take a cruise: 42 per cent of visitors have been on one or several cruises, and for 34 per cent the event increased their willingness to go on a cruise at some point in the future. The proportion of international visitors also went up, with seven per cent of visitors coming from abroad. Thirty-three per cent of the German visitors were from Hamburg.
For the majority of visitors, the Hamburg Cruise Days are not just a captivating spectacle but also a great opportunity to find out more about cruises and services offered by the cruise companies. With a varied programme along the waterfront, visitors had a superb choice of first-rate entertainment, shopping, food and drink, and a wealth of impressions from the world of cruises and life on board a cruise liner.

Quite apart from the event’s impact, the visitors also discovered the city’s many charms: 72 per cent of visitors from outside the city booked accommodation in Hamburg, staying an average of 2.4 days. They ate in restaurants, visited the city’s sights, including the Elbphilharmonie, went on harbour cruises, excursions, visited museums, musicals or theatres and they went shopping. On average, visitors spent €294 over the event weekend, not including expenditure at the event itself!