With nine ships scheduled to sail regularly along its coast, the Brazilian cruise market is preparing for the 2024-25 cruise season.

Rio de Janeiro, one of the main homeports , is updated its cruise terminal with a new air-conditioned luggage area.

The facility is also investing in a new food center featuring restaurants overlooking Guanabara Bay, as announced by the town’s undersecretary of tourism, Bruno Matos, during the 5th CLIA Brazil Forum, which took place in Brasília recently.

Matos emphasized that various authorities in Rio de Janeiro are collaborating to prepare the city for cruise passengers.

“We coordinate with various authorities. The cruise terminal informs us of the ship docking dates, and we implement a special operation to improve flow and reception on those days,” Matos explained.

Ilhabela, a popular port of call for ships sailing from Santos and Rio de Janeiro, has established a school to train new tourism professionals.

The town is also improving the language skills of guides and staff, as explained by tourism secretary Ricardo Cretella.

“Besides English and Spanish, we have personnel who speak other languages, with enough guides and a fully prepared team ready to serve guests,” he said.

With a strong focus on ecotourism, Ilhabela has also done maintenance work on its nature trails and waterfalls, he added.

Porto Belo, a resort town on the southern coast, is investing in new attractions and tours for tourists.

According to the city’s tourism secretary, Zene Drodowski, the city is opening a new lookout point ahead of the cruise season, as well as a walkway that runs above the ocean to connect two beaches.

These new attractions are within walking distance of the pier where cruise passengers arrive, she explained.

“Our town takes this matter very seriously, focusing on providing infrastructure and quality attractions,” Drodowski added.

Angra dos Reis has invested in a new eco-friendly pier for cruise guests, constructed using over 220,000 plastic bottles.

“We hosted cruise lines for an inspection, and the new facility was highly praised,” said the town’s Tourism Secretary Marc Olichon.

The city is also investing in staff training to properly welcome tourists, he noted, by hiring professionals who speak English or Spanish.