Canaveral Port Authority CEO Captain John Murray delivered his annual State of the Port address earlier this week.
According to Murray, the port’s total earned revenues came in at $191 million, with cruise operations contributing $156 million.
“Port Canaveral continues to be a strategic economic driver for creating jobs, helping local businesses to grow and prosper, and bringing more guests to experience all that our port community has to offer,” said Murray. “We are proud of our growth and the collective success of our region.”
Building upon its distinction as the world’s second busiest cruise port, Port Canaveral handled a record 7.6 million passenger movements – a 12-percent increase over the previous year – with 13 homeported ships, 911 cruise ship calls, and 914,000 vehicles parked.
Over the past year, the port also added new parking facilities and an upgraded parking processing system.
“Cruise continues to be a significant segment of our business portfolio, with some of the newest and largest ships in the world based in Port Canaveral. This speaks volumes to our cruise partners’ confidence in our ability to deliver exceptional results for their guests consistently,” added Murray.
Port Canaveral is anticipating another robust business year in FY 2025 that includes growth with total projected revenues of $211 million.
The port’s cruise business will grow to include 16 homeported ships with a projected 8.4 million passenger movements, 1,030 ship calls, and multiple ship upgrades and exchanges.
This includes Royal Caribbean’s new Icon-class LNG-powered Star of the Seas and the addition of two new cruise partners for the port: Princess Cruises and the Celebrity Cruises, each homeporting ships at Port Canaveral for the first time.
