“The cruises that pollute and dump their low-cost clientele who consume nothing, but leave their waste behind… these cruises have no place with us.”
The French city of Nice is the latest destination to say it will ban large cruise ships from docking in its port. Mayor Christian Estrosi signed a decree this week preventing ships with a capacity greater than 900 passengers from docking in the ports in Nice and neighboring Villefranche-sur-Mer (which is part of the municipality of Nice) from July 1.
The mayor, who has long been vocal about the impacts of cruise tourism on the city, has also requested reductions in the number of ferry crossings between the city and the French island of Corsica on environmental grounds. Unlike many other ports in the Mediterranean, the ports in Nice front residential streets, rather than the sprawling, isolated port complexes of neighboring cities such as Marseille.
The bylaw still requires an approval vote by regional authorities. Nice is part of the French Region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur.
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If enacted, the ban would leave cruise lines scrambling to find alternatives. Last-minute port changes can draw the ire of passengers, leaving cruise lines in a difficult position.
Nice and Villefrance-sur-Mer are popular cruise ports, and many cruise lines, including Celebrity, Oceania Cruises, Cunard, Royal Caribbean, Princess, Viking, and Holland America Line, have already scheduled port calls for the 2025 summer season. Those cruise lines, which have already sold cabins based on an itinerary that includes Nice, would have to find alternate ports or substitute a port call for a day at sea if they were no longer able to call at Nice.
In an interview with France Télévision, the mayor also cited overtourism and concerns over marine biodiversity as reasons for the move. He repeated those concerns in a speech to Nice residents explaining the move.
“Tourism, yes; overtourism, no. The cruises that pollute and dump their low-cost clientele who consume nothing, but leave their waste behind… these cruises have no place with us.”
The Nice Chamber of Commerce and Industry estimates that cruise passengers spend an average of €38 during their visits to the city, while conference visitors spend €180, although it’s unclear if the cost of accommodation is included in spending totals for non-cruise visitors.
The Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), a cruise industry group, responded to the mayor’s proposed bylaw change with disappointment via a spokesperson: “We regret the comments made by the mayor of Nice, which unfairly stigmatize both tourism professionals and our passengers. We are even more surprised given that no large cruise ships are scheduled to call at the Port of Nice in 2025. Furthermore, only three large cruise ships and 34 medium-sized ships are expected to anchor off Villefranche-sur-Mer during 2025. CLIA and its member companies will continue to work closely with ports and municipalities that share our desire to develop ever more sustainable tourism.”
Nice, on France’s Mediterranean coast near the Italian border, is the country’s second-most visited city after Paris, welcoming some 5 million visitors annually. Both the city of Nice and the surrounding region have long been popular in film and television. The Cary Grant film An Affair to Remember includes an ocean liner port call at Villefranche-sur-Mer. Villefranche-sur-Mer was also recently depicted in the Netflix series Emily in Paris.
Cities in the Cote d’Azur region have long been accused of elitism in their tourism industries. The peninsula of St. Jean-Cap-Ferrat, overlooking the VIllefranche-sur-Mer harbor where the largest cruise ships dock, is home to France’s most expensive real estate. Restaurants in Saint-Tropez, to the west of Nice, have been accused of “wealth-screening”, or refusing tables to patrons they deem not wealthy enough following an internet search.
Nearby Cannes is also considering a ban on large cruise ships, joining European cities like Venice, and Barcelona, which have added restrictions requiring the largest ships to dock further from the city center.
Not all European cities are opposed to an increase in cruise tourism. The port of Copenhagen is hoping to break a cruise passenger record in the summer of 2025, welcoming over a million cruise passengers for the first time.
