By
Laura Hyde |
Global Ports Holding, the world’s largest independent cruise port operator, handled record numbers of cruise passengers between 31 March 2022 and 31 March 2023 and expects a “consistent increase” in these volumes, according to a Preliminary Results report released on 10 July.
In the first three months of 2023, the Istanbul-based company handled a total of 2.5 million passengers at its 27 cruise ports across 14 countries, up from the previous high of 1.8 million for the same period in 2022.
Over the past 12 months, it has welcomed 9.2 million passengers. This is a 281 per cent increase on the same period in 2022, when just 2.4 million passengers passed through the company’s consolidated and managed ports.
The biggest increase in passenger numbers was reported in the eastern Mediterranean and Adriatic, where visitor numbers rose from 0.06 million to 0.9 million, a 4,510 per cent increase. The largest numbers were welcomed in ports around the Americas, with numbers rising from 1.5 million (up to 31 March 2022) to 4.4 million in the year to 31 March 2023, a 186 per cent increase.
In the report, Global Ports Holding noted “Nassau Cruise Port in The Bahamas had several days of hosting six cruise ships simultaneously and welcomed over 28,000 passengers in a single day”.
“The scheduled growth in the global cruise fleet in the year ahead will drive available berth capacity across the industry to new highs and, with strong forecast growth for the global cruise fleet and 11.8 million passengers expected at our consolidated and managed ports in the 2024 reporting period, we look towards the future with confidence,” said Mehmet Kutman, chairman and CEO of Global Ports Holdings. “The outlook for the global cruise industry has perhaps never been stronger. The global cruise fleet is now fully redeployed, occupancy rates are generally back above 100 per cent, and many cruise lines have broken booking records for the 2023 season. We’re well-positioned to play a pivotal role in the continued development and growth of the global cruise industry and look forward to the future with excitement and optimism.”
Read the full report here.