IELTS Listening · Cam 21

Test 2 Part 4

For my presentation today, I'm going to talk about some of the issues

Level: C1 · 88 sentences

Transcript

  1. For my presentation today,
  2. I'm going to talk about some of the issues
  3. facing the cruise ship industry,
  4. and then some ways these can be addressed.
  5. The cruise ship industry has partly been responsible
  6. for the effects of overtourism in recent decades.
  7. Overtourism occurs in places where excessive numbers of tourists, cause significant problems.
  8. Pollution, for example,
  9. is among the greatest threats to many popular tourist destinations.
  10. Of course, for many places, it's a difficult balance to achieve.
  11. They want to promote their city or island
  12. as a desirable tourist destination,
  13. but at the same time are unable to cope
  14. with thousands of cruise ship passengers on a daily basis.
  15. The trouble is...
  16. Excessive tourism is destroying the beauty spots
  17. and places of interest that people come to visit.
  18. Several cities, such as Barcelona, have responded by imposing a tax,
  19. which all visitors to the city from cruise ships have to pay.
  20. But as it's only a couple of euros,
  21. many green campaigners think it won't deter enough people
  22. to make any difference.
  23. Bruges is another city which became impossible to navigate at times,
  24. because of the huge numbers of cruise passengers arriving
  25. on day trips from the port of Zeebrugge.
  26. The city was becoming like a theme park,
  27. with shops only catering for tourists selling chocolate,
  28. which Belgium is famous for, and other souvenirs.
  29. The local council took action to limit cruise passengers
  30. to a more manageable level.
  31. Dubrovnik had to limit the numbers of cruise ships
  32. to after it became extremely popular as a cruise ship destination
  33. when it featured in a hugely successful TV series.
  34. What it does now is control the timing
  35. of all cruise ship entries to the city's port.
  36. However, many people feel this measure does not go far enough.
  37. Cruise ships may be unpopular in some of their destinations,
  38. but they also have an image problem.
  39. They've always been perceived as a safe holiday for the elderly,
  40. with not much on offer for families or young couples.
  41. A recent survey showed that cost is also a major
  42. factor in putting younger groups off going on a cruise.
  43. But what they don't realize is that
  44. compared to other types of package holidays,
  45. cruises can actually be good value,
  46. as all activities and drinks are often included.
  47. And another perception is is that cruises have lots
  48. of rules about what to wear and how to behave.
  49. But these days, most cruises are no longer very formal
  50. and behind the times.
  51. So what solutions are there for cruise lines
  52. to overcome some of these problems?
  53. How can they appeal to younger customers?
  54. Well, one selling point is that cruise ships are becoming more sustainable.
  55. New ships are built with hybrid engines with large batteries.
  56. which means ships do not have to keep their
  57. engines running while docked.
  58. Cruise lines are also designing ships specially for those
  59. in the age range of 21 to 45.
  60. The decor in these feels contemporary,
  61. and there are a range of activities on board
  62. that you wouldn't find on a more traditional cruise.
  63. There's even a boxing ring on one ship,
  64. and most offer diving expeditions.
  65. But there's also a huge focus on well-being.
  66. with a variety of sessions of different kinds.
  67. Food is always a very important part of any cruise,
  68. and cruise ships have had to radically update their
  69. menus to suit the tastes of their younger customers.
  70. Vegan dishes are standard, for example.
  71. The restaurants on board have also gone paperless,
  72. with menus available on screen.
  73. Unlike older generations who went on cruises largely
  74. to get away from everything,
  75. younger people expect to be able to keep
  76. in touch with friends and family.
  77. Many people going on longer cruises also spend time working,
  78. so companies have to guarantee Wi-Fi that can be
  79. relied upon at all times.
  80. My grandparents used to love looking through cruise brochures,
  81. even when they weren't planning on going on a cruise.
  82. Until very recently, TV ads for cruises always felt dated
  83. and aimed at retirees.
  84. Cruise lines have been slowed to adopt the power of social media,
  85. but that's all changing.
  86. Leading cruise lines now employ top agencies to produce
  87. first-rate videos for social media channels.
  88. It will be interesting to see whether the cruise...