The number of cruise vessel visits to Dunedin is expected to increase from 69 in the 2025-26 season to 85 in 2026-27.
For 43 of the scheduled visits, the ships would have capacity to bring at least 2000 passengers, a report for the Otago Regional Council said.
The seasonal influx from about October to April has historically put pressure on public transport services, but efforts were stepped up in recent years to manage the situation proactively.
For the coming season, a significant reduction is planned regarding the number of additional public bus trips provided between Port Chalmers and central Dunedin.
There were 255 extra trips in the 2025-26 season and that number is set to fall to 159 for 2026-27.
This reflected changes in cruise operator shuttle arrangements and more targeted deployment of additional services for large cruise ships, the council said.
The council planned to provide additional services for 28 of the 43 higher-capacity vessels, as several cruise operators provided complimentary or discounted shuttle services for their passengers.
Bus trips would be added to peak periods, morning and afternoon, based on cruise ship arrival times and passenger loadings.
The council report highlighted a rebound in the cruise sector after the Covid-19 pandemic, which led to public transport services quickly reaching capacity on cruise ship days.
There were substantial queues of passengers waiting to board buses and departure delays.
‘‘Residents were unable to board at peak times, generating a high level of complaints.’’
West Harbour Community Board chairman Jarrod Hodson said congestion issues had been handled better in recent years.
It would soon be obvious if arrangements for the next season were not working, he said.
‘‘We’ll be watching and we will know very quickly if the wheels start to fall off, and we will follow up on it.’’
The council regarded the past two seasons as successful.
‘‘The result has again been positive, with favourable community feedback and minimal complaints across the season,’’ its report said about 2025-26.
This helped shape planning for the upcoming season.
Port Otago agreed to underwrite the cost of running the programme.
Chief executive Kevin Winders said the cruise industry was important for the regional economy.
‘‘This season, starting October, we’ve got the most scheduled cruise ships coming to New Zealand of any port,’’ he said.
‘‘And that’s OK, but clearly it’s down about 30% on where we were pre-Covid.’’
Mr Winders said Milford was one of the top attractions in the world for cruise ships and Dunedin was a night’s sail from there.
The port had worked with the regional council to ensure the settings were about right regarding buses, he said.
The council said the 2025-26 programme around cruise ships successfully reduced impacts on public transport services while maintaining access for local passengers.
Analysis of Bee Card data indicated no reduction in resident patronage during cruise ship operations.
This was based on most passengers off cruise ships paying in cash and most residents using Bee cards.
Demand from cruise ship passengers was lower than originally anticipated.
Some ships offered free shuttles to passengers.
