Carnival Cruise Line is pouring $600 million into this tropical escape, exclusive to its passengers.

嘉年華郵輪公司斥資 6 億美元打造了這一乘客專屬的熱帶度假勝地。

The first phase is set to open in July 2025.

第一階段定於 2025 年 7 月開放。

It's part of a growing trend of private islands and destinations, owned and operated by cruise lines themselves.

由郵輪公司自己擁有和經營的私人島嶼和旅遊景點日益增多，這也是這一趨勢的一部分。

It makes a lot of economic sense for them.

這對他們來說很有經濟意義。

They're able to keep the passengers on the ship within their own ecosystems.

他們能把船上的乘客控制在自己的生態系統內。

But experts worry these developments drain local tourism, pulling profits from small businesses.

但專家們擔心，這些開發項目會消耗當地的旅遊業，使小企業失去利潤。

This is the economics of the private islands of cruises.

這就是遊輪上的私人島嶼經濟。

For cruise passengers, access to these private destinations is free.

對於遊輪乘客來說，進入這些私人旅遊景點是免費的。

But the real profit for the cruise lines comes from on-island spending.

但郵輪公司真正的利潤來自島上的消費。

Cruise lines have figured out ways to upcharge folks left and right.

郵輪公司已經想出了各種辦法，向人們收取高額費用。

So similar to what you might find at a theme park, not everything comes for free.

是以，就像在主題公園裡一樣，並不是所有東西都是免費的。

The idea is to keep them in these private destinations for a particular amount of time, four hours, six hours, whatever, and to basically keep them spending there and not leave.

這樣做的目的是讓他們在這些私人目的地停留一定的時間，四小時、六小時，等等，基本上讓他們呆在那裡不離開。

Take MSC's private island, Ocean Key.

以地中海航運公司的私人島嶼 "海洋之鑰 "為例。

While there are free food options like a food court and a barbecue buffet, specialty shops cost extra, like the ice cream parlor.

雖然有美食廣場和燒烤自助餐等免費食物可供選擇，但冰淇淋店等專賣店需要額外收費。

And standard beach access comes with a cruise ticket.

遊船票還附帶標準海灘使用權。

But cabanas can range from an extra $278 to $422, or even more, depending on season and location.

但是，根據季節和地點的不同，小木屋的價格從 278 美元到 422 美元不等，甚至更高。

And all this keeps money within the cruise ecosystem.

所有這些都使資金留在了郵輪生態系統中。

If a cruise ship goes to another port and just lets people out, they're going to visit other businesses, and that's money that the cruise line is not making itself.

如果一艘遊輪到了另一個港口，只是讓人們離開，他們就會去參觀其他企業，而這些錢並不是遊輪公司自己賺的。

Whereas if they go to the private island, the passengers get off the ship, and when they buy drinks, buy food, buy souvenirs, that's money that the cruise line itself is directly making.

而如果去的是私人島嶼，乘客下船後買飲料、買食物、買紀念品，這些錢都是遊輪公司自己直接賺的。

And it's paying off.

而這也得到了回報。

Perfect Day at Coco Cay cost Royal Caribbean over $250 million in renovations.

可可礁的完美一天花費了皇家加勒比超過 2.5 億美元的翻新費用。

But a UBS analysis estimated the island was on track to generate an additional $100 million in annual profit based on its first few months.

但據瑞銀集團的分析估計，根據最初幾個月的情況，該島有望每年額外創造 1 億美元的利潤。

And the same analysis estimates that Carnival's Celebration Key could generate around $150 million in profit in its first full year.

同一份分析報告還估計，嘉年華的 "慶典之鑰 "號郵輪在開航後的第一個完整年度可創造約 1.5 億美元的利潤。

It's expected to become Carnival's most profitable private destination.

它有望成為嘉年華最賺錢的私人目的地。

But critics are concerned about the rise of these private locations.

但責備人士對這些私人場所的興起表示擔憂。

Over the past decade, at least four new private destinations have opened, with even more under construction.

在過去十年中，至少有四個新的私人旅遊景點開業，還有更多的旅遊景點正在建設中。

The more and more we see these islands built out, the less we'll see ships visiting more traditional ports.

我們看到這些島嶼越建越多，到傳統港口的船隻就會越來越少。

Historically, Caribbean countries have generated revenue from cruise tourism through several channels.

從歷史上看，加勒比國家通過多種管道從郵輪旅遊中獲得收入。

Private islands create another revenue stream for countries, with cruise lines securing multimillion-dollar contracts for land through 100-year leases.

私人島嶼為國家創造了另一個收入來源，遊輪公司通過 100 年租約獲得了價值數百萬美元的土地合同。

But...

但是

We have such little information about the details of these agreements, what the lease agreement is, what the sale price was, and so on.

我們對這些協議的細節、租賃協議的內容、銷售價格等資訊知之甚少。

Cruise lines say these islands can also help ease congestion at packed ports and serve as backup stops when bad weather disrupts itineraries.

郵輪公司表示，這些島嶼還有助於緩解擁擠港口的擁堵狀況，並在惡劣天氣中斷行程時作為備用停靠站。

But critics argue that private islands cut into previously reliable revenue streams, like passenger spending in ports and local job creation.

但批評者認為，私人島嶼削減了以前可靠的收入來源，如港口的旅客消費和當地創造的就業機會。

The communities and the businesses that have come to rely on the money that comes in when cruise ships dock and hundreds, if not thousands, of passengers get off, that money might dry up and instead go to these private islands.

當遊輪靠岸，成百上千的乘客下船時，那些依賴遊輪帶來的收入的社區和企業，這些錢可能會枯竭，轉而流向這些私人島嶼。

Restaurants are not getting the businesses they used to get, the souvenir vendors and so on.

餐館和紀念品商販等的生意不如從前。

Experts also worry that private islands could allow companies to bypass traditional port fees and taxes.

專家們還擔心，私人島嶼可以讓公司繞過傳統的港口費用和稅收。

All of these traditional avenues of flowing into the Caribbean economies are either totally curtailed or limited by the private islands.

所有這些流入加勒比經濟的傳統管道都被私人島嶼完全切斷或限制。

But the Bahamian Ministry of Tourism says that cruise passengers who only visit private islands actually pay a higher passenger tax.

但巴哈馬旅遊部表示，只遊覽私人島嶼的遊輪乘客實際上要支付更高的乘客稅。

And a value-added tax implemented in 2024 ensures that goods and services on private islands are taxed the same as those outside the cruise ecosystem, something that hasn't been required in the past.

2024 年實施的增值稅確保了對私人島嶼上的商品和服務徵收與遊輪生態系統以外相同的稅，而這在過去是沒有要求的。

Royal Caribbean and MSC said most workers on Coco Cay and Ocean Quay are Bahamian locals.

皇家加勒比和地中海航運公司表示，在可可礁和海洋碼頭工作的大多數工人都是巴哈馬當地人。

And in a statement, Carnival says they've teamed up with the Bahamian government to ensure mutual benefits.

嘉年華在一份聲明中表示，他們已與巴哈馬政府合作，確保互惠互利。

It is hard to underplay how important tourism is to these economies.

旅遊業對這些經濟體的重要性不容忽視。

Anything that would lead a cruise line to perhaps sail elsewhere is something they want to avoid.

任何可能導致郵輪公司改道的事情，都是他們希望避免的。

So there is the extent to which they are willing to play ball because it is such a major driver of economic activity for these countries.

是以，這些國家在多大程度上願意合作，因為這是這些國家經濟活動的主要驅動力。

The Caribbean is the world's leading hub for cruise lines, with about 44 percent of cruise passengers traveling to the region in 2023.

加勒比海是世界主要的郵輪航線樞紐，2023 年約有 44% 的郵輪乘客將前往該地區。

Experts say tourism ministries have historically measured success by the number of visitors they attract.

專家表示，旅遊部歷來以吸引遊客的數量來衡量成功與否。

And cruise lines brought almost $13 million to the Caribbean that year.

當年，遊輪公司為加勒比地區帶來了近 1300 萬美元的收入。

Cruise lines come in and say, we will bring in so much investment, we will create so many jobs and so on, and they give them very large-sounding numbers.

郵輪公司來了之後說，我們將帶來這麼多投資，我們將創造這麼多就業機會，等等，他們給出的數字聽起來非常誇張。

And we will increase the number of visitors coming to your country.

我們將增加前往貴國的遊客數量。

And they oftentimes present what, when we're able to check them, oftentimes turn out to be very rosy and unrealistic figures to the country that they're negotiating with.

當我們能夠對其進行核查時，他們往往會向與之談判的國家提出非常美好和不切實際的數字。

But with the success of private destinations in the Caribbean, cruise lines are expanding to new locations worldwide.

但隨著加勒比海私人旅遊目的地的成功，遊輪公司正在向世界各地的新地點擴張。

Royal Caribbean's upcoming destination, Perfect Day Mexico, is slated to open in 2027.

皇家加勒比即將推出的目的地 "完美一天墨西哥 "計劃於 2027 年開放。

I really do think it's an idea that cruise lines are going to export to other markets.

我真的認為這是郵輪公司向其他市場輸出的一個想法。

And some of those will be successes, some may not be.

其中有些會取得成功，有些可能不會。

But I think to the extent that they can create these closed ecosystems, they're going to try to see if that will work in a different market because it's been so successful in the Caribbean.

但我認為，只要他們能夠創建這些封閉的生態系統，他們就會嘗試看看這是否會在不同的市場取得成功，因為這在加勒比地區非常成功。