PHOTO: The Norwegian Dawn docks at the Port of New Orleans. (Courtesy of Norwegian Cruise Line)
Port of New Orleans cruise terminals handled more than 1 million cruise passengers in 2014 for the first time in its history, setting a record for the fourth straight year.
For the 12-month period, embarkations and disembarkations totaled 1,014,325, an increase of more than 2.6 percent over 2013.
"This is a great milestone for the Port of New Orleans," said Port President and CEO Gary LaGrange. "The total represents a 180 percent increase in cruise passengers since 2001, the year the port began in earnest marketing itself as a premier cruise destination."
Cruise Lines International Association ranked New Orleans the sixth-largest cruise port in the U.S. with direct expenditures in Louisiana totaling $406 million, supporting 8,129 jobs and accounting for $323 million in total income.
"We market cruising from the port as two vacations in one," LaGrange said. "New Orleans is a world-class destination city. Cruise passengers on average stay two nights either before or after their cruise - it's like an additional port of call."
The port calculates that more than 80 percent of cruise passengers are from out of state and that 60 percent spend an average of two nights in New Orleans, generating about $75 million.
The Port of New Orleans currently is homeport to four cruise ships. Carnival Cruise Line bases two ships year-round in New Orleans - the 2,052-passenger Carnival Elation sails four- and five-day itineraries and the 3,646-passenger Carnival Dream operates seven-day Eastern and Western Caribbean itineraries.
Norwegian Cruise Line's 2,340-passenger Norwegian Dawn and Royal Caribbean International's 2,476-passenger Serenade of the Seas sail weekly voyages through April.
River and coastal cruises calling at New Orleans include American Cruise Lines' sternwheeler Queen of the Mississippi and American Queen Steamboat Co.'s American Queen. Blount Small Ship Adventures sails inland itineraries aboard the Grand Caribe, and Travel Dynamics International sails its Yorktown coastal ship from the port.
Topics From This Article to Explore
