To the editor,
Re: Two cruise ships come calling, May 30.
Sunday the Norwegian Sun docked in Nanaimo. Many cruise ship passengers were walking around downtown, strolling along the waterfront to Maffeo Sutton Park and across the pedestrian bridge to the end of the walkway. It was a gorgeous day and the views were stunning.
Some efforts were made to welcome the visitors such as the tourist booth set up across from the Port Theatre. Another draw was the cannon firing at the Bastion. On Commercial Street, merchants were open and displayed welcome signs.
However, the city didn’t have sufficient staff to clean up the downtown. Empty liquor bottles, food containers, etc. littered parts of downtown; garbage bins overflowed. Beside the Millstone River pathway into Maffeo Sutton, the grass was overgrown.
If the City of Nanaimo wants to be a destination for cruise ships, tourists from across Canada and around the world, then a concerted effort is necessary to ensure the downtown streets, the harbour front, pathways and parks are well maintained, particularly when the cruise ships dock. Visitors are worthy of our best efforts. Nanaimo is a wonderful place to live and to visit. The City of Nanaimo must make more of an effort to showcase its beauty.
To excel as a tourist destination, Nanaimo requires collaboration and co-ordination of the city, all business and tourism organizations for tourists, visitors and cruise ship passengers to experience a welcoming, clean environment with local tourist information readily available.
P.J. Ruddy, Nanaimo
