An investment of more than $100 million from Broward County's Port Everglades will facilitate a complete makeover of Cruise Terminal 25, which will continue to be a preferential berth for Royal Caribbean Cruises, Ltd. (RCCL) as part of a new long-term agreement approved unanimously by the Broward County Board of County Commissioners.
The new agreement replaces the current RCCL agreement, which expires at the end of 2017, and continues through September 30, 2026, with options to extend the terms for an additional four years, followed by an additional five years. RCCL owns both Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises cruise lines, both of which sail from Port Everglades, one of the world’s busiest cruise ports.
"Renovating Cruise Terminal 25 was already part of our Master/Vision Plan, and was scheduled to begin this year," said Port Everglades Chief Executive and Port Director Steven Cernak. "Giving preferential berthing rights to Royal Caribbean allows us to build a facility that meets their expectations for the new generations of larger cruise ships and for the new Celebrity Edge, which is scheduled to homeport at Port Everglades beginning in December 2018."
Cruise Terminal 25 was originally built in 1992. A section to provide an additional elevator was completed in 2004.
RCCL also has preferential berthing rights at Cruise Terminal 18, which was completed in 2009 to welcome Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas and her sister ships Allure of the Seas in 2010 and Harmony of the Seas in 2016. All three sister ships are part of the Oasis-class of ships, which are considered the largest and most innovative cruise ships in the world. The newer Harmony of the Seas replaced Oasis of the Seas to sail year-round every Saturday from Port Everglades. Allure of the Seas sails every Sunday year-round.
Beginning December 2018, Celebrity EdgeSM, the first ship in Celebrity Cruises' new class of ships in nearly a decade, will also be sailing out of Port Everglades. Designed in 3-D, and featuring the work of A-list global architects and designers, the 2,918-guest Celebrity Edge was designed to bring the outside in and aims to make discerning global travelers redefine how they experience the world and how intimate a vacation can be.
The Port Everglades Department is a self-supporting Enterprise Fund of Broward County, Fla. government with operating revenues of more than $163 million in Fiscal Year 2016 (October 1, 2015 through September 30, 2016). It does not rely on local tax dollars for operations.
One of the busiest cruise ports in the world, Port Everglades received more than 3.8 million passengers from October 1, 2015 through September 30, 2016. Eleven cruise lines, one ferry service and more than 40 cruise ships sail from the port.
