Port Canaveral is on a roll.
Where it once took Port Canaveral a year to record 1 million cruise passengers, it now comes within striking distance of that figure in a single month.
The Central Florida port closest to Orlando reported a new monthly record of 925,994 passenger movements in March 2025, a 16 percent increase over the same month last year.
The milestone marks the busiest month in the port’s history and puts it on pace to reach a projected 8.4 million passenger movements in Fiscal Year 2025 – up from 7.6 million the year prior.
“It wasn’t long ago when we exceeded 500,000 guests in a single month. Now, with numbers like this approaching nearly a million, it’s not just remarkable, it demonstrates the strong demand for sailings from our port,” said Captain John Murray, Port Canaveral CEO.
“We’ve been predicting it, and we were ready for it,” he added.
The record-setting March comes just ahead of a wave of new ship deployments to Port Canaveral.
Norwegian Cruise Line’s brand-new 3,571-guest Norwegian Aqua is set to arrive on April 26, 2025, followed by Royal Caribbean’s soon-to-debut 5,610-passenger Star of the Seas on August 20, 2025.
“Port Canaveral has become the homeport of choice for new ships,” Murray said.
“More cruise lines [are] deploying newer and larger existing tonnage, which speaks volumes about our partners’ confidence in our ability to consistently deliver high-quality experience for their guests,” he added.
This winter, additional vessels from Celebrity Cruises, MSC Cruises, Princess Cruises, and Norwegian Cruise Line will also join the lineup, joining 16 ships from seven cruise lines that already call the port home.
And the boom isn’t just benefiting cruise operators. According to the Space Coast Office of Tourism, 91 percent of cruise guests stay overnight in the area, and 27 percent extend their trips with pre- and post-cruise hotel stays.
On average, the office says cruisers spend $3,072 during their visits to the area, supporting restaurants, hotels, and local businesses.
That spending power is fueling new development. Roughly 2,000 new hotel rooms are expected to be added across Florida’s Space Coast by 2025, which is nearly a 20 percent increase from 2021.
Raising the Bar at Port Canaveral
Much of the Port Canaveral’s growth is attributed to the port’s appeal among drive-market passengers from Southeast US and its reputation for ease of access, with Murray taking pride in providing easy-in and easy-out services.
During a one-on-one interview with Cruise Hive during Seatrade Cruise Global in April 2025, Murray said the port intends to “raise the bar” and become the No. 1 US port.
“We are the first and last part of the cruise experience,” he said, as he discussed steps the port is taking to ensure passengers moves efficiently through the port.
This includes the use of facial recognition, pre-paid parking, vertical lifts for those with mobility issues, and the use of substitute gangways to ensure gangways are always functioning, even with the port operating regularly at least six days a week.
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The port is also investing millions in upgrading and expanding its existing cruise facilities, with extensive renovations planned for Cruise Terminal 5 to increase the terminal’s capability to accommodate larger vessels.
The terminal will remain in service during renovations and, when completed, will be roughly 65 percent larger, encompassing 150,000 square feet.
It will expand its luggage areas, provide more passenger seating, upgrade crew and employee areas, add more elevators and escalators, and give its entrance and exterior a new look.
Meanwhile, Cruise Terminal 1 is also undergoing a refresh with new canopies and walkways, as Cruise Terminal 10 undergoes a feasibility study to explore potential upgrade enhancements.
Two more new cruise ships will debut at the port in 2027.
Carnival Cruise Line’s Carnival Festivale, carrying up to 5,270 guests and arriving in spring, and the 6,762-passenger MSC World Atlantic from MSC Cruises, scheduled to arrive in winter, will both homeport at Port Canaveral.
