A total of 94 cruise ships will visit Dunedin and Port Chalmers this season, the first arriving on October 15.
But there are 24 fewer ships visiting this year than last.
This decrease will affect the business some retailers receive.
Craft Bar & Kitchen owner John MacDonald said he was disappointed by the decrease.
"Any drop-off of tourists and visitors to Dunedin is disappointing and will have an impact on the coming summer months."
Given the business’ location, the cruise ships visiting were "massively important", Mr MacDonald said.
Craft Bar & Kitchen, Gelato Junkie, I Love Merino Dunedin and For Little Kiwis tended to pull in business as a collective when ships visited due to their proximity to one another.
"We desperately need this.
"The cruise ship business has traditionally been really good for us."
Dunedin was "highly valued" as a destination because of the amount of activities that could be done in a day, he said.
Mac’s Brew Bar manager Jaz Ngatai shared her disappointment.
"We really do heavily rely on the cruise ship season just to get us through that summer period."
They were especially important as students went home for Christmas and New Year, creating less business.
"We always have a busy summer and we’ve definitely had hotter weather which has been nice. We’ve found it’s been hotter earlier this year."
Dunedin Social Club manager Joe Presley said fewer cruise ships meant fewer staff working and lower sales.
"It’s not a good thing for anyone in hospitality or anyone that’s relying on tourism."
Cruise ship season was still something to look forward to, this being his first year to experience it, Mr Presley said.
"Knowing that there’s over 20 less cruise ships is a big negative."
Port of Otago commercial manager Craig Usher said a chunk of economic value would now be lost.
"The key thing for us is the less vessels, the less spend for the community."
About $70 million to $100 million was contributed to the Otago regional economy by the cruise sector annually, Mr Usher said.
"Let’s face it, we’re keeping our wallets in our pockets. So it’s quite important to have international cash coming through the town."
The number of ships had decreased because of security threats in the Red Sea and a growing Japanese cruise market.
Before the 2020-21 Covid-19 pandemic, 130 ships had been booked for that season and subsequently cancelled.
"The city just buzzes. It’s the perfect time of the year, especially around December [and] January when the students are away and you get that retail spend through the city."
