Cruise Traffic Seasonality Patterns in the Western Mediterranean and the Adriatic Sea: A Challenge to Port Operators

The positive trend in the cruise industry since the beginning of the twenty-first century brings with it a series of challenges, mainly for cruise lines and ports. Among them is the seasonality of cruise traffic. This study examines the seasonality of the cruise traffic in the Western Mediterranean and the Adriatic Sea. A sample of 26 ports in 7 countries forms the basis of the empirical analysis, which uses the monthly total cruise passenger movements of each port during the period from 2005 to 2015 as a variable. Methodologically, a “dynamic” classification of ports structured in three sizes is proposed, the seasonality pattern of each port is determined, a cluster analysis is applied to group the ports in clusters with homogeneous patterns, and the changes in seasonal concentration during the analysis period are determined using a Gini coefficient. The main findings suggest the heterogeneity of the ports in the analyzed area and the existence of two clusters with different seasonality patterns. Furthermore, a list of strategies is provided to address the negative effects of cruise traffic seasonality in the management of cruise terminals, taking into account that each cluster obtained requires different strategies.