The State of Maine is seeking proposals for the following research services: (1) Cruise Ship Visitor Profile Research and, (2) Economic Impact of Cruise Visitors Research. The Department of Economic and Community Development (Department) is seeking proposals to provide research services for the Maine Office of Tourism as defined in this Request for Proposals (RFP) document. This document provides instructions for submitting proposals, the procedure and criteria by which the Provider(s) will be selected and the contractual terms which will govern the relationship between the State of Maine (State) and the awarded Bidder(s). The Department seeks to establish one contract to conduct the following research services for the Office of Tourism: Visitor Profile Research that provides an updated, in-depth profile of cruise ship visitors in terms of behavior, attitudes, and spending of cruise ship passengers and crew, as well as identifies differences between first-time visitors and repeat visitors including intent to return via cruise or by a land-based method. Economic Impact Analysis for cruise ship visitation to the Maine travel and tourism industry evaluating the 2025 cruise ship season beginning in April 2025 – November 2025. Impact figures are to be reported for the State of Maine. The main objective for the Economic Impact Research is to measure the economic impact of tourism to Maine, direct and indirect, in terms of total sales (including provisioning and marine services), jobs supported, tariff fees collected, and taxes generated.
