Carnival Cruise Line already offers more cruises out of Maryland than any other cruise line, and now the company has agreed to a five-year extension with the Port of Baltimore.
The agreement goes into effect on the first of January of next year and will include an option for an additional five years.
Carnival has been sailing out of the Maryland cruise port for two decades and currently offers 117 sailings from November 2024 until April of 2027.
These cruises range from 7 to 14-nights on Carnival Pride, a Spirit-class ship that was launched in 2001 and can accommodate just over 2,000 passengers.
These sailings take passengers to destinations like the Bahamas and Caribbean in addition to Canada and the Panama Canal on longer sailings.
2023 was a banner year for the Baltimore cruise port, with over 400,000 passengers passing through the terminal.
“We’re truly proud of our long history of sailing from Baltimore, and grateful for the strong partnership with the port and its great city and state, as we get ready to commemorate 20 years of service here in October,” stated Carnival Cruise Line President Christine Duffy.
“We’re looking forward to building on our partnership over the next five years and couldn’t be happier to continue providing cruise vacations from Baltimore.”
The cruise port was hit hard by the tragic collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in March. During a two-month period of time all cruise traffic to Baltimore was diverted to Norfolk, Virginia.
Despite the bridge collapse, Baltimore will have roughly 378,000 passengers use the port in 2024, and that number is expected to be exceeded in 2025.
Maryland Port Administration Executive Director Jonathan Daniels stated the importance of the relationship with Carnival and the ease of access the port offers to passengers.
“We’re very happy to continue our relationship with Carnival for at least another five years. Our cruise terminal’s unique location right off Interstate 95 and within minutes of Interstate 70 allows for easy access from several eastern and midwestern states. Many people also choose to come a day before or stay a day after their cruise to enjoy all there is to offer in our city and region,” Daniels stated.
The cruise industry alone provides about 400 jobs to residents of Baltimore, and according to news reports, about $1 million of revenue is generated per cruise.
Royal Caribbean’s Vision of the Seas also sails out of Baltimore and is scheduled to do so at least until April of 2026.
