The Dream Factory of China

The Shekou Prince Bay Cruise Homeport, which was put into use Saturday, unveiled the newest chapter to Shenzhen’s cruise industry.

The homeport is the only cruise port in China capable of accommodating 220,000-ton cruise liners.

“The cruise port is just like a newborn baby, which needs support from the government in policy, industrial planning and marketing,” Zhang Heyun, director of Shenzhen tourism administration, said at a conference on cruise cooperation between mainland, Hong Kong and Macao yesterday.

“The city had submitted an application to the provincial government for approval of a 15-day visa-free policy for foreign group tours and hopes it will be approved soon by the Central Government,” Zhang said. It is working on an overall development plan for the cruise industry between 2017-2030.

The developer China Merchant Group is turning the homeport area into a coastal community that manages shipping, ports, tourism, businesses, shopping and entertainment.

According to Zhang, related government agencies are integrating transportation and port service resources to extend the cruise industrial chain and turn the cruise homeport into a new driving force for tourism by promoting and integrating it with other tourism, culture sites and business centers in the city.

Shenzhen has its unique conditions that promote the development of the cruise industry, as it is one of the most important tourist destinations in China. It is located in a key and advantageous geographical position in the Pearl River Delta with all convenient transportation such as ferries, cars, planes and trains to reach the surrounding cities of Macao, Hong Kong, Guangzhou and Zhuhai comfortably within one to two hours.

“China is expected to become the fastest-growing country in the world as international cruise lines ramp up their operations to meet the surging demand from the emerging middle class,” Chen said.

In 2015, more than 2.28 million Chinese travelers took cruises, an increase of 44 percent over the previous year.

This number is expected to rise to 5 million by 2020.

Travelers to Prince Bay Cruise Homeport can get off at Shekou Port Station of Line 2 and take shuttle buses for free to the destination, which is 1.5 kilometers away. The buses operate between 6:30 a.m. to 11 p.m.

Commuting tips

For bus transport: passengers can take 328 and K105 to the underground parking lot of the home port, or take other buses to Shekou Port stop and take shuttle buses from there.