Twenty-five years of cruising to and from Seattle and Alaska has officially begun with the arrival of the Norwegian Bliss Bell at Street Pier Cruise Terminal at Pier 66, the Port of Seattle announced April 6.
This year’s cruising season, which is scheduled to run through Oct. 28, is anticipated to have 275 sailings and support 5,500 jobs. It’s also expected to create almost $900 million in economic impact and 1.7 million revenue-generating passengers (translating to roughly more than 800,000 unique passengers), according to the port.
David J. Herrera, president of Norwegian Cruise Line, said his company is proud of its long-standing partnership with the port.
“Our commitment to the local Seattle and Alaska communities is very important to all of us at NCL, as together we deliver dream vacations for our guests,” he stated. “We remain dedicated to Seattle and look forward (to) working together to enhance its cruise operation by connecting our ships to shore power at Pier 66 in the near future.”
The port is wrapping up its work to bring electrification to Pier 66 and plans to plug in cruise ships to shore power this summer. When completed, all three Seattle cruise berths would be able to offer shore power, reaching a milestone of electrifying all cruise berths, according to the port.
“Over the last 25 years, the cruise business has become a significant part of our local economy, contributing to hundreds of businesses and thousands of jobs,” Port of Seattle Commissioner Ryan Calkins said. “All that activity comes with environmental impacts, however, and so the Port of Seattle is committed to providing a leadership role in advancing maritime decarbonization.”
