The Irish News predicted that with these 200,000 passengers and crew spilling out into shops, restaurants and tourist attractions, there could be a combined spend of up to £20 million.
2019 is, however, set to smash last year’s record with 151 cruise ships scheduled to dock at Belfast, bringing up to 285,000 visitors. Taking this growing trend into consideration our BI Developer, Jake, used the widely available cruise ship schedule to develop a handy, interactive dashboard using Microsoft Power BI. The dashboard allows you to select how many days into the future you want to see from the current date, and answers questions such as:
- How many passengers and crew are arriving in that period
- A trend of when ships will arrive in that period enabling you to see busy/quiet periods
- How long each ship will dock in Belfast
You can also hover over each ship to receive more detail, such as a picture of the ship and some facts around the vessel. This could be a handy resource for bars, restaurants and other businesses in Belfast to ensure that they are prepared for the influx of tourists that the arrival of a cruise ship can create.
Jump Straight to the Interactive Dashboard
Video Demo
Design and Layout
The main considerations taken when initially sketching out design ideas were:
- Utilising a dark theme. Many modern applications give the option of light or dark themes and it is not something that Jake has considered with previous dashboards, usually opting for a light theme.
- User interaction. Jake wanted it to be simple and quick for users to get the information that was relevant to them. This was achieved by the user only having to enter how many days from the current date they want to view.
- Quick access to additional information, without cluttering up the dashboard. This was achieved by using the hover tooltip, to provide images of the ships, as well as passenger numbers.
Initial Dashboard Sketch
