Royal Caribbean to Build Cruise Terminal in Galveston

March 9, 2021

© daviles / Adobe Stock
© daviles / Adobe Stock

Royal Caribbean International (RCI) announced this week that it will begin building a $100 million cruise terminal at the Port of Galveston’s Pier 10 in April. The cruise giant said it will begin sailing its Oasis-class ship, the Allure of the Seas, from Galveston beginning in November 2022.

According to the Port of Galveston, the annual impact from this terminal includes 1,320 new jobs, $60.7 million in personal income, $1.4 billion in local business services revenue and $5.6 million in state and local taxes. It will also generate millions of dollars in direct revenue for the port and the city of Galveston, not including the multimillion-dollar economic impact the cruise industry will have on the local economy once the cruise lines begin sailing again. 

The port will pay the city at least $300,000 a year. Based on passenger volume, the port expects this amount to increase if annual passenger numbers at the new terminal grow beyond 600,000.

In addition, the port estimates that port-operated cruise parking sales tax revenue paid to the city will grow to more than $1 million a year when its cruise business is back to pre-pandemic levels. This doesn’t include sales tax that the city receives from privately operated cruise parking businesses.

Construction of a third cruise terminal had been put on hold in 2021 due to the pandemic. RCI exercised a contract option to extend its final decision until April 2021. In the meantime, RCI and port staff have continued to lay the groundwork to move forward.

It is expected that the agreement to move forward will be finalized in the coming weeks.

Logistics News

DP World Begins $165 Million Expansion of Maputo Container Terminal Capacity

DP World Begins $165 Million Expansion of Maputo Container Terminal Capacity

Port Canaveral Invests $500 Million in Five-Year Port-Wide Improvement Plan

Port Canaveral Invests $500 Million in Five-Year Port-Wide Improvement Plan

Syria Signs New 30-Year Deal with CMA CGM

Syria Signs New 30-Year Deal with CMA CGM

Adani Ports Sees Higher FY26 Revenue Growth on Robust Volumes

Adani Ports Sees Higher FY26 Revenue Growth on Robust Volumes

Subscribe for Maritime Logistics Professional E‑News

Equinor anticipates a tight European summer gas supply
Tunisia receives offers for 25,000 T of restricted barley, traders report
South Korea's FLC purchases about 60,000 metric tonnes of feed wheat, traders claim