New technology will soon be offered in both Cruise Terminals 2 and 25 to compliment high-tech enhancements that are being made onboard cruise ships that homeport at Port Everglades.
In a cruise industry first, Port Everglades will be the only port worldwide to have a terminal specially activated with Carnival Corporation’s new Ocean Medallion technology. To be installed in Cruise Terminal 2 by Carnival Corporation at a cost of US$4 million, the Ocean Medallion technology will enable passengers to seamlessly connect to its services before and after their cruise, allowing them to begin enjoying their personalised cruise experience upon entering the terminal building. Regal Princess, part of Carnival Corporation’s Princess Cruises brand, will be the first ship to offer the Ocean Medallion technology from November 2017.
Meanwhile, Port Everglades is investing up to US$114 million to modernise and completely renovate Cruise Terminal 25 in time for Celebrity Cruises to homeport its newest ship, Celebrity Edge, at the port from 16 December 2018. Currently in the design phase, Cruise Terminal 25 will reflect the modern luxury of the Celebrity Cruises brand and the ultra-modern character of its 2,918-guest Celebrity Edge, the first new cruise ship for the line in nearly a decade.
As well as these major facility improvements, Port Everglades is also the first, and only, cruise port in the US to adopt a Mobile Passport Control (MPC) smartphone application to augment the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) entry process for US and Canadian passengers cruising back into the country. The MPC programme was first used at a number of airports across the country, including Broward County’s Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. In addition, Port Everglades participates in CBP’s Global Entry programme, giving preferential processing to those cruise guests who are Global Entry card holders.
The Port Everglades Cruise App, available for iPhones, is another technological advancement that is helping passengers to navigate their cruise vacations. Listed among the top 1,000 US travel apps, it enables passengers to find the information they need by searching according to ship, cruise line and date of departure.
Port Everglades is consistently ranked as one of the three busiest cruise ports in the world, handling more than 3.8 million passengers annually. One ferry – Baleària’s Bahamas Express – and 40 ships from 10 cruise lines currently sail from the South Florida seaport. They include Carnival Cruise Line, Celebrity Cruises, Costa Cruises, Crystal Cruises, Cunard Line, Holland America Line, Pearl Sea Cruises, Princess Cruises, Royal Caribbean International, and Silversea Cruises.