Photo / Andrew WarnerOpinionThe first time I learned Mount Maunganui people have a tradition of lining the beach at Pilot Bay to wave goodbye to cruise ships I was dumbfounded. In 2015, the Bay welcomed 147,518 cruise visitors. Even in the Covid-curtailed 2020 cruise season, Tauranga still welcomed more than 180,000 visitors - who spent in the order of $74 million in the Bay of Plenty. In the year to June 2020, half of cruise ship visitors to New Zealand were Australian. And yet, while we have opened our borders to Aussies who arrive on planes, those who would rather cruise over are not welcome.

Source: New Zealand Herald May 11, 2021 22:07 UTC