Port officials say more people than ever took a cruise out of New Orleans over the past year.
Port NOLA announced, "a record-breaking year with more than 1.2 million cruise passenger movements in 2024."
The forecast is for the industry to just keep growing.
"AAA projects 19 million Americans will go on ocean cruises this year, a 4.5% increase over 2024, when 18.2 million Americans went on cruise vacations," AAA said in a news release. "2025 is expected to be the third straight year of record cruise passenger volume."
Cruising took a big blow during the COVID-19 pandemic, but has come back stronger than ever.
“We are grateful to our cruise and hospitality partners, including New Orleans & Company, for their role in helping Port NOLA achieve a record-breaking number of passengers,” said Port NOLA President & CEO Beth Branch. “These valued partnerships continue to drive strong demand and promising growth projections for both ocean-going and river cruising from Port NOLA. We look forward to building on this momentum for another successful year in 2025.”
The port says that people who take a cruise out of New Orleans also spend money on shore.
"Port NOLA’s cruise business contributes significantly to the state and local economy. Ninety percent of cruise guests travel from out-of-state - 70% of those guests spend one or two days in New Orleans either before or after their cruise - generating more than 300,000 hotel room nights and upward of $125 million in local spending each year."