Cruise ship traffic, passengers spike at Port of San Juan
From May to June 2014, a total of 49 cruise ships and 152,589 passengers arrived to Puerto Rico. (Credit: © Mauricio Pascual)
Cruise ship traffic and passenger arrivals at the Port of San Juan reflected significant growth in May and June, when they jumped by 53 percent and 49 percent year-over-year, respectively, Ports Authority Executive Director Víctor Suárez said Monday.
When compared to 2012, the current results represent a 104 percent increase in cruise ship arrivals and 96 percent growth in passenger traffic, he said.
From May to June 2014, a total of 49 cruise ships and 152,589 passengers arrived to Puerto Rico, versus the 32 ships and 102,111 passengers registered for the same months of 2013. This represents an increase of 17 ships and 50,478 passengers, equivalent to 53 percent and 49 percent, respectively.
Suárez attributed the increases to the implementation of the new “Low Season Rates” program at the Port Authority, which began in May and runs through October 2014. Due to the incentives granted in May 2014, 25 cruises arrived, which exceeding in one month the total accumulated between May and June 2012, he said. The statistics show that in 2012 there were 24 cruise ships and 77,730 passengers on record for the same period.
“As we set out in our work plan, strategies to attract more cruise ships and passengers this offseason have produced a dramatic increase, almost double the statistics when compared with the same period of 2012,” he siad. “We’re confident that this growing trend in cruise ships and passengers will be upheld during the remaining three months of the offseason.”
