There’s a lot that will be happening at Port Canaveral over the next several years. With this being the second busiest cruise port in the world, it’s not surprising that there will be quite a few changes to come. Here’s what’s happening.
New Cruises
In 2019, there will be some new cruise ships coming to Port Canaveral. The Norwegian Sun will be returning to this port on April 12. It will be based here year round instead of just seasonally. The Carnival Elation will be replacing the Carnival Sunshine on April 17. Harmony of the Seas will be heading to Port Canaveral on May 6, while the Oasis of the Seas will be leaving.
Disney Cruises May Be More Readily Available
Disney cruises are quite popular with families. In the future, there will be three cruise ships sailing out of Port Canaveral year round instead of just two. This is not surprising as Disney is adding three more ships to its fleet of four ships. These new ships are expected to launch in 2021, 2022 and 2023.
Cruise Terminal 3 Will Be Completed
Construction is ongoing for a new Cruise Terminal 3. This $150 million construction project is expected to be completed in May of 2020. Cruise Terminal 3 will be home to a new Carnival cruise ship. Currently under construction is the largest ship for Carnival Cruise Line, that still hasn’t been named. This ship will be 180,000 tons and have a maximum capacity of about 6,500.
Faster Customs Procedures
One of the worst parts about going on a cruise is dealing with customs. It can be a slow and frustrating process. At Port Canaveral customs agents will receive better training and a lot more support. This will allow for cruise passengers to get through customs a lot quicker.
Berths That Will Have Dual Use
Being that Port Canaveral is so busy, it has been difficult to handle cruise ships on days that are exceptionally busy. This has especially been true since the old Cruise Terminal 3 was demolished in order for the new Cruise Terminal 3 to be built. To handle this better, Berths 5 and 6 will have dual use in order to handle all of the traffic. This will allow Port Canaveral to have dock space for every ship and not have to turn any of them away.
