I am wondering if the community can clarify the use of the ‘route=ferry’ vs ‘attraction=boat_ride’ for cruise ships.
I ask specifically in relation to the multiple routes in the sea around SE Asia which I understand is a politically sensitive area (see attached pic). For example, the current openstreetmap (as of 29th Oct 2023) shows multiple ‘ferry’ routes in this area, however a search for purchasing tickets for these routes brings up no results in 2023. There are ‘cruise ships’ listed as operating these routes (occasionally), the dates for 2023 which can be found here: https://lxs.cncn.com/63004/n687347. But they are clearly cruise ships and not regular passanger/car ferries.
Touristical boat trips (where one always boards and unboards at the same spot) should not be tagged as a ferry, but with attraction=boat_ride instead.
But this is unclear - because for cruise ships there is an expectation that you may unboard at a different place, but the final destination is the same as the start. Should these routes be marked as ‘route=ferry’ or ‘attraction=boat_ride’ or perhaps even something else?
Again, I am seeking clarification due to the potentially political conflict with this - some actors may have a motivation to mark these routes as ‘regular ferry routes’ in order to stake a political claim to certain pieces of land.
Personally, I would have said that we wouldn’t / shouldn’t map cruise ship journeys, the same as we don’t map air routes.
As for the other two, I would think that route=ferry is for a scheduled trip from A > B > C, usually for commuting purposes; while attraction=boat_ride is primarily tourist-oriented for a one-off cruise up the river / around the Bay, with the same passengers unlikely to come back for a second trip.
You are misunderstanding the section. attraction=boat_ride is for small boats viewing a city, or cable-propelled in theme parks. It’s not for ferry class ships, or cruise ships. The page itself Tag:attraction=boat_ride - OpenStreetMap Wiki is clearer.
As mentioned by others, cruise ships are not added due to irregularity. But regular sightseeing ship routes should be acceptable. They serve dual function of views and transport, similar to open-top double-decker bus circular routes.
The question about boat_ride has already been answered, but the question remains when a sea journey that takes multiple days should be mapped as a ferry route.
The more I think about it the harder I find it to come up with a clear cut distinction between ferries and cruises.
Some ferries e.g. Calais-Dover are commonly used by tourists, so it’s not about tourism vs commuting. Some overnight ones are effectively used by some passengers as ferries (to get from A to B) and by others as cruise ships, for example the Hurtigruten line in Norway. But Hurtigruten provides a regular scheduled passenger service with multiple boats so I’m not surprised it is mapped as a route=ferry even if that is only one of its functions, and it’s marketed internationally like a cruise.
Maybe these sea journeys should be mapped as a route=ferry as long as they provide a regular, scheduled service?
(This won’t work for some river ferries that simply leave when they fill up.)
I am also curious why it would be politically sensitive to map it as a ferry or not. There are many ferries between England and France, the Netherlands and Belgium and no one would think that means the Dutch now have a claim to Newcastle.
Certainly when updating some ferry connected and not connected islets and islands learned about about isolated ways and tagging ferry routes for modes of transport, foot, bicycle, motorcar/motor_vehicle, particular when those islets and islands have roads and tracks i.e. there are motor_vehicles. The ferry routes then become part of the navigation plan… in that not heard of cruise ships taking cars. Working with the OSM Inspector guy resolved some router issues. Yes there are islets and islands that don’t have ferry connections or only do foot/bike and the number of ways are less than 20, which is/was the threshold if ways are considered isolated from the road network.
I updated the original post with a screenshot of the area in question for more background. But the general consensus here seems to be that:
Cruise ship routes are not attraction=boat_ride - that is for small boats
Cruise ship routes (that are not regular) should not be added to the map, and
Quotes from the above responses as references:
Kovoschiz
attraction=boat_ride is for small boats viewing a city, or cable-propelled in theme parks. It’s not for ferry class ships, or cruise ships. The page itself Tag:attraction=boat_ride - OpenStreetMap Wiki is clearer.
Kovoschiz
As mentioned by others, cruise ships are not added due to irregularity
osmuser63783
Maybe these sea journeys should be mapped as a route=ferry as long as they provide a regular, scheduled service?
Fizzie41
I would think that route=ferry is for a scheduled trip from A > B > C, usually for commuting purposes;
Does that seem right? If so - should we update the route=ferry page to explain that iregular cruise ships shouldn’t be added? Appreciate the responses here from everyone.
