The rising cost of marine diesel is prompting several boating operators in Santa Barbara to consider increasing their prices, as fuel expenses continue to strain harbor businesses.
Jamie Diamond, CEO of Santa Barbara Landing, said operators are facing limited options as costs climb.
“There’s only so many things we can do, and fuel is one of those driving forces,” Diamond said.
Diamond confirmed that the company has already raised rates for one vessel and is evaluating similar increases across the rest of its fleet.
“For one of the vessels, we preemptively did raise the rates, and the other vessels, we are considering raising the rates,” Diamond said.
The financial pressure is being felt across the harbor community. Skip Abed, president of the Santa Barbara Sailing Center, said fuel costs are taking a toll on operations, particularly for whale watching trips that do not include fuel surcharges.
“The cost of diesel and running our whale watching trips, and we don’t charge a fuel fee, with the state of the economy, it’s really putting an impact into our harbor community,” Abed said.
Santa Barbara Landing officials say they are reviewing a possible price increase as early as June, though they are trying to avoid frequent fluctuations for customers.
“In the past, we tried to wait it out and see if it was temporary in nature, if it would come back down, so our customers aren’t having a yo-yo effect,” Diamond said.
Local operators say the uncertainty surrounding fuel prices continues to make long-term planning difficult, leaving businesses to weigh the balance between covering costs and keeping trips affordable.
