Cruise ships return to B.C., with tourist dollars and environmental concerns in tow

Simone Kearney-Rodriguez is looking forward to putting cash in the register this weekend when the first crowd of cruise ship passengers pull into port in Victoria, B.C., on Saturday, after the last two cruise seasons were cancelled due to COVID-19.

The owner of the Beaver Gift Shop says her family business almost sunk without the support of hundreds of thousands of cruise tourists that have kept her afloat for more than 30 years.

 “We’re still alive, but it took everything that I had to keep going,” she told CBC’s On the Island.

She’s not alone: according to the Tourism Industry Association of B.C., cruise ships