NORFOLK, Va. — Cruise season is officially underway in the Mermaid City and this is the city's biggest cruise season ever, according to Nauticus officials.
This week, the 4,000-passenger ship Carnival Magic docked in Norfolk. Sunday’s visit launched the start of Carnival’s longest sailing season ever for the city.
Nauticus executive director Stephen Kirkland said every week through October this season, a cruise ship will dock at the Half Moone Cruise Center.
He said this is a record cruise season.
“This is the longest Carnival has ever been here and the largest ship we’ve ever had doing weekly service. In terms of volume – just passenger volume – it really is a game changer," Kirkland said. “So imagine the ship that left yesterday will be back on Saturday, will disembark those 4,000 guests that came here yesterday, will embark 4,000 more, and then of course will turn that ship and it will be sailing by 5 o'clock. So that’s 8,000 people in downtown in one day.”
Over the six-month season, Magic will embark 100,000 passengers from across the country. That means thousands of people traveling to and from Norfolk. Kirkland said they’ll stay in area hotels, eat at local restaurants, and go shopping.
Nauticus officials expect passenger spending to generate nearly $25 million in economic impact. Kirkland called it a win for regional tourism.
“Each of these guests will spend about $125 while they’re in port... some will spend more, some will spend less. That really equates to millions and millions of dollars for this economy," he said. “They’re having an impact on this economy as you might if we were to go to Miami and take a cruise. So the ripple effect really does extend beyond Nauticus and that’s the important part of this program.”
Carnival will offer year-round sailing out of Norfolk beginning in two years. When this season ends in October, Kirkland said crews will begin modifying the Half Moone Cruise terminal to better prepare.
“This year is exciting, but in 2025 to have a ship literally sailing every week out of Nauticus from January to December and on and on and on. Hands down, the biggest thing that’s happened to this program," Kirkland.
“We’ve got to process these passengers more efficiently so we’ll be making some enhancements inside. Being able to get them down to customs quicker, being able to expand this front loop somewhat so we can absorb more passengers off Waterside Drive, just to make the process more seamless before we jump into this year-round.”
According to Nauticus, Carnival Magic will depart from Norfolk 26 times this year to the Caribbean, New England, and Canada.