It was held in the Council Room, promoted by the Councilor for Tourism and Cruises Maria Bruni, a meeting for planning the cruise tourist offer. The date of the first of the expected thirty-three cruise ship arrivals in 2024 is February 24th. The meeting was attended by trade, cultural and craft associations, economic operators in the tourism sector, the manager of the cruise terminal, managers of seaside beaches and maritime agencies. Furthermore, the director of the National Archaeological Museum of Crotone and of the National Archaeological Museum and Park of Capo Colonna and the Port Authority were present. The president of the Productive Activities Council Commission, Domenico Ceraudo, also spoke.
Councilor Bruni opened the proceedings by presenting the guidelines on which the administration is also movingand in order to deseasonalize tourism in the city and in particular the “Paths and roots tourism”; he also informed those present that, soon, thanks to funding from the Ministry of Tourism, the entire port area will be connected via wi-fi. Councilor Bruni also recalled that the Municipality, precisely on the occasion of the arrivals of the ships, published a tender to make 11 stations available to commercial operators along Via Vittorio Veneto in order to promote and taste typical Calabrian products as well as displaying regional craft products. The 2024 cruise calendar has been viewed and each participant presented initiatives and activities that could involve cruise passengers. It was also agreed that it is appropriate for the start of the bathing season to be brought forward to the middle of May as, with the mild climate of Crotone, cruise passengers go to the sea very willingly. It is advisable that catering and food supply facilities (ice cream parlors, pizzerias, trattorias, pastry shops) are open during cruise passengers’ visits.
Councilor Bruni also highlighted that, once the initiatives that the partnership will present have been shared and systemised, they will find in the Municipality’s project, VISIT CROTONE, a “container” in which to bring them together in order to present tourists with a structured offer and diverse. In order to enhance tourist information, since the arrival of the ship, the managing body of the terminal has also given its availability to act as a sounding board for the events that will be organized in the Crotone area. Furthermore, we focused on the strong need for trade associations to push for the training of commercial activity staff: knowledge of a foreign language is fundamental, as is the drafting of tourist menus in that language and also suited to the needs some children. Furthermore, another niche is being strengthened and that is school tourism. The port authority representative updated those present on the progress of the works on the port and that, undoubtedly, an upgrade of the infrastructure is necessary if tourism is to be boosted.