AAA Auto Club released its first-ever cruise forecast on Monday, predicting a record-high number of cruisegoers for 2025.
About 19 million cruisegoers will take sail this year, and most will depart from Florida, according to the travel group.
Miami, Port Canaveral, and Fort Lauderdale are the country’s top three busiest ports. The forecast used embarkation and debarkation to make the distinction.
AAA spokesperson Mark Jenkins said cruise ships are a big boom for Florida tourism.
“You have people not just here in Florida who want a cruise, but people who are traveling to Florida from out of state and from out of the country,” Jenkins said.
“Many of them are coming specifically for a cruise,” he added. “Others are coming maybe to visit the theme parks in Orlando and then they’ll spend part of their time on a cruise ship as well.”
In 2019, Florida accounted for $8.6 billion in wages according to the Cruise Lines International Association.
The Sunshine State’s ports benefit from a couple of unique factors.
The world’s largest cruise ship, Icon of the Seas, is ported in Miami. Port Canaveral will welcome the Icon’s equally-sized sister ship, Star of the Seas, this summer.
Jenkins said Florida’s proximity to a popular destination attracts cruisegoers.
He said the state is a “gateway” to the Caribbean for passengers. And 72% of passengers will visit the area on vacation.
The Port of Tampa is another location for travelers can depart from. However, limitations such as the Sunshine Skyway Bridge only allow smaller vessels to dock.
The recent spike in cruisegoers comes after historic down years during the Covid-19 pandemic. 2020 only 2.7 million people boarded a cruise in 2020 according to the AAA press release.
Since 2022, the cruise industry has seen a steady increase in passengers. Jenkins said a possible reason for the recent increase in cruisers is a response to people being isolated.
“Coming out of the pandemic, there was this feeling of almost like revenge travel,” Jenkins said. “People had been cooped up in their homes during the pandemic and they wanted to do something so bad.”
For those looking to book a cruise soon, Jenkins said now is the time.
January and February are what travel agents call “wave season”, a time when cruise lines offer incentives to those who book far in advance.
“If you are interested in taking a cruise, it’s important to start looking into those options early,” Jenkins’ said. “You can make sure that you can get the cruise ship you want, the cabin that you want, and the itinerary that you’re interested in.”
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