Sarah Herrmann, Yorke Peninsula Country Times

Wallaroo will soon enter its fifth summer since a cruise ship docked at its jetty.

The port town last hosted a cruise ship during the 2019-20 cruise season, not long before the Covid-19 pandemic began.

With the State Government announcing South Australia will host 119 cruise ship visits during the 2024-25 season, key stakeholders are advocating for the ships to return to the Copper Coast.

In July, the YP Country Times reported that travellers on three Coral Adventurer ships would visit southern Yorke Peninsula’s Dhilba Guuranda-Innes National Park this November. 

Waiting for ships to come in

Cruise ship passengers will also visit Kangaroo Island, Eyre Peninsula, Adelaide, Adelaide Hills, Barossa, Clare Valley, Fleurieu Peninsula and the Limestone Coast, Tourism Minister Zoe Bettison said earlier this month.

The Australian Cruise Association’s annual conference was hosted in Adelaide during September, attended by almost 160 industry delegates.

Minister Bettison said the conference helped to increase awareness of all ports and anchorages in the state, including Wallaroo.

“Wallaroo is a destination which has received cruise visits in the past to great success, as it provides passengers with great access to destinations, including exploring more of Yorke Peninsula or heading to the worldclass wine region of Clare Valley,” she said.

“We are in constant talks with cruise lines to secure visits across our state, including Wallaroo, and we are very hopeful we will have something locked in for this port in future seasons.”

Copper Coast Council mayor Roslyn Talbot said the region had a lot to offer cruise lines, not least its beaches.

“With the Moonta Mines State Heritage Area now on the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List, there are even more reasons for cruise ship operators to look at us,” Mrs Talbot said.

“It is great to see the ships have returned to South Australia, but one can’t help but feel that Yorke Peninsula has been forgotten, in particular Wallaroo and the Copper Coast region.”

Council chief executive Dylan Strong said the return of cruise ships to Wallaroo would be an economic boost for the whole peninsula.

“The region’s seasonal tourism period is strong — we see that every summer — but the addition of cruise ships back into the mix would give the area a kick in those critical shoulder and off-peak times,” he said.

Mr Strong said attracting cruise ships was a significant undertaking, requiring collaboration at all levels of government, plus corporate encouragement, and substantial resources devoted to advocacy by all.

“Council is working with Yorke Peninsula Tourism and local operators to update our Copper Coast tourism marketing assets; the first step of this is a photography shoot happening in December,” he said.

“Council looks forward to a collaborative period of advocacy for the Copper Coast with our tourism bodies.

“We are willing to do what it takes, but we cannot do it alone.”

YP Tourism regional tourism manager Jess Greatwich said YPT worked with the SA Tourism Commission and Copper Coast Council to support and showcase the region’s products and experiences, which she said was a key driver for the cruise sector.

“YPT works very closely with the Copper Coast Council towards our shared strategic goal of the sustainable return of cruise arrivals to Wallaroo,” Ms Greatwich said.

“We meet regularly to discuss our work and map out future actions, along with facilitating engagement with SATC.

“A key aspect of this strategy is our joint, continued investment in the development of the visitor economy to ensure our region can offer a diverse suite of high-quality experiences for guests to the region to include in their cruise itineraries.”

Flinders Port Holdings owns and operates the Wallaroo jetty, where cruise ships can dock.

A FPH representative said it worked closely with SATC to promote their ports to cruise lines.

FPH will be part of the South Australian Cruise Attraction working group, announced at the ACA conference, which will discuss and determine opportunities to attract more cruise vessels to SA. 

This article appeared in Yorke Peninsula Country Times, 15 October 2024.