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| Dancers pose in front of the Silver Muse at Myanmar International Terminal Thilawa on December 6. |
Dancers wearing the eight major ethnic costumes of Myanmar stood on the dock unmindful of the sweltering humidity and the hustle and bustle of the Myanmar International Terminal Thilawa one recent evening.
They stood near shuttle buses, private cars and tour guides, all waiting to welcome visitors from the MS Silver Muse – the last cruise ship expected to dock in the country this year. It is operated by Silversea Cruises.
The Silver Muse, which carried 425 visitors and 404 crew members, arrived in Yangon from Phuket, Thailand, on December 6.
Foreign visitors come to Myanmar either by water, overland or air, but many have arrived on cruise ships in the past few years.
The Ministry of Hotels and Tourism says that in 2017, 20 cruise ships carrying 20,000 people docked at the Myanmar terminal and MacLeod Island in the Myeik Archipelago in Tanintharyi Region.
Through the end of November this year, 23 cruise ships visited the country, carrying 21,700 visitors, an increase of more than 10,000 compared to the same period in 2017, said U Khin Maung Soe, director of the ministry.
Meanwhile, back on the dock, the band began playing traditional music and the dancers started moving their hands and fingers gracefully, their hips swaying to the rhythm of the music.
People on the luxury liner watched the show with awe and amusement from their private rooms. One by one they disembarked and gathered around the dancers and the band for a closer look, before boarding shuttle buses that would take them to downtown Yangon for sightseeing.
The Silver Muse was docked for two nights and three days at the terminal so the tourists could go downtown to shop for souvenirs, while others went to nearby Bago Region and even as far as Bagan to get more of what Myanmar has to offer.
U Myo Win Nyut said the cruise ships stay an average of five days at the terminal and two and half days at MacLeod Island in Myeik Archipelago.
“Most passengers on the cruises spend a lot of money, so the longer they stay in the country, the more the country makes,” said U Thet Lwin Toh, managing director of Myanmar Voyages International Tourism and port operator for the cruise.
The ministry allows stays of four nights and five days for cruise passengers coming through Kawthoung in Tanintharyi, which charges a US$100 (K157,000) entrance fee and US$30 for a visa on arrival. The visitors pay US$150 if they want to continue to Myeik Archipelago for four nights and five more days.
Visitor only pay a US$30 fee for a visa on arrival at the Yangon terminal. The cruise ship has to pay landing fees depending on its size, weight and length and the number of days they stay in port.
“The Silver Muse is over 200 metres long, 27m high and weighs over 40,000 tonnes. So if it stays for three days in port, it pays more than US$80,000 to the ministry,” U Thet Lwin Toh said.
Since making Myanmar one of their destinations in 1990, more than 200 cruise ships have visited the country, he said.
U Thet Lwin Toh said the number of visitors arriving by water has been steadily increasing even though there are no dedicated harbours for cruise ships. He said these ships have to dock alongside freighters at the Yangon terminal.
“Visitors may not be as comfortable, but a cruise terminal costs a lot, and private companies can’t build one without government participation,” he said.
Immigration officers have to conduct customs, quarantine and immigration checks aboard the cruise ships.
From 1995 to 2004, immigration officers went to the sea to meet the ships before they docked, he said.
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“The government was worried that its political opponents and foreign journalists would try to enter the country on cruises. The government has since done away with these regulations to attract more cruise ships,” he said.
The ministry is discussing allowing cruise ships to dock in Mawlamyine township in Mon State and at Ngapali beach in Thandwe township, Rakhine State. The problem is there are no port services for the ships in these places.
“Mawlamyine and Ngapali have no services for cruise ships. We are negotiating for anchorage with the townships,” U Khin Maung Soe said.
A cruise ship will come from India past Mawlamyine and Ngapali to Yangon in February 2019, he said.
With the decline of travellers from western countries since the Rakhine humanitarian crisis began in October 2017, tourist arrivals on cruise ships could boost the country’s tourism industry.
“We have to show our growth to international investors who want to invest in our country to develop cruise tours,” U Thet Lwin Toh said.
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