THE Island’s tourism downturn cannot be explained by ferry disruption alone, the Economic Development Minister has said – as he defended the government’s strategy and pointed to global pressures on the industry.
Deputy Kirsten Morel was responding to concerns from Jersey Heritage, La Mare Wine Estate and Seymour Hotels, which told the JEP that delays to DFDS’s timetable and the high cost of visiting Jersey had driven visitor numbers down this summer.
Figures published by Visit Jersey show a 16% year-to-date decline in visitors up to the end of June, with 23,100 fewer sea arrivals making up most of the shortfall.
The number of visitor bed nights in the first six months of 2025 was down 118,200 compared with last year – a drop of 13%.
The downturn followed a troubled start to the year for DFDS.
The Danish operator, appointed as Jersey’s preferred ferry provider last December, was only able to publish a partial timetable in January.
The company acknowledged the “later-than-expected commencement” of their operations due to what it described as “delays obtaining” its contract to operate.
Sailings began in March but were affected by technical problems, including a fault with the Tarifa Jet on the France route and a lift breakdown on the Levante Jet to the UK, which caused difficulties for passengers with reduced mobility.
While businesses have pointed to ferry disruption and rising costs as drivers behind the decline in visitor numbers, Deputy Morel said it was an “oversimplification” to focus on one or two issues.
“Globally, visitor numbers have fallen and, rather than competing on price against European destinations which will remain cheaper than Jersey, our focus is on playing to the Island’s strengths by targeting visitors who will come for our wonderful food, natural environment and history and culture,” he said.
He argued that long-term investment was the key to improving Jersey’s competitiveness.
“Investment in accommodation and the wider product is key to achieving the goals set out in the Visitor Economy Strategy,” the minister said.
“We’re working alongside the industry and, through the Better Business Support Package, helping businesses to improve the visitor experience. It will take time for those investments to deliver but they’re putting us on the right track.”
Deputy Morel also stressed that air links, as well as ferries, had been affected.
“Ferries only account for 30% of travel to Jersey, and our air links have also faced challenges. In fact, visitor numbers by air have seen a greater fall than those by sea, caused by the difficult UK environment and the difficulties faced by Blue Islands.”
The minister said he expected numbers to recover.
“For all these reasons, we expect to see improvements to visitor numbers in the coming months and into next year.”
Ports of Jersey and DFDS have also moved to defend their performance.
Stephen King, Ports of Jersey’s chief operating officer, said air passenger numbers had remained “broadly consistent” with 2024, while sea travel had improved as the season progressed.
A spokesperson for DFDS, meanwhile, acknowledged the slow start but said numbers were now improving – with travel from the UK in August increasing by 4% compared with the same period last year.
The company said it recognised the challenges facing the tourism sector and was working with Visit Jersey and Ports of Jersey to support recovery, while acknowledging that demand from France remained “more challenging”.
Businesses, however, say the disruption has already taken its toll.
Jersey Heritage reported an 8.5% fall in summer occupancy at its heritage lets, with bookings from France down 62% compared with last year.
La Mare Wine Estate said it expected to finish the year 20% down on visitors, while Seymour Hotels said that visitor numbers were “noticeably down”.
The downturn in visitor numbers has also been felt by Durrell, with the organisation seeing a 16% drop in visitors in 2024, its lowest since the pandemic.
