Cannes has begun enforcing new limits on cruise ship visits this summer, permitting only one vessel carrying more than 3,000 passengers into the bay per day under a plan the town council approved last year.
Thierry Migoule, director of the office of mayor David Lisnard, said the change marked a deliberate shift away from mass cruise tourism. "We don't want a mass cruise industry," he said. "Large ships don't really benefit local businesses, they have everything on board and only come ashore for excursions." The town aims to cut visits by large ships to 34 this year and 31 in 2027, with a daily cap of 6,000 disembarking passengers, according to figures released by the Mairie de Cannes.
The restrictions echo similar measures introduced by Nice in January, and follow moves in Venice, Palma and Ibiza to curb cruise numbers. Cannes recorded 175 ship visits and 460,000 cruise passengers in 2024. Lisnard's office says the town is aiming, by 2030, to admit only smaller "premium" ships carrying fewer than 1,300 passengers.
The Union Maritime et Fluviale, a trade body representing the cruise sector, has criticised the move, arguing it threatens jobs tied to the cruise supply chain.