City of St. John’s Reaches 300,000 Cruise Ship Passengers

The City of St. John’s together with the St. John’s Port Authority have reached a significant milestone in the cruise ship industry. We are pleased to welcome the 300,000th cruise ship guest to our Port City since 1999.

This momentous occasion is being celebrated at a dockside ceremony today. The Mayor of St. John’s, City Council and St. John’s Port Authority representatives will greet a selected visitor as its 300,000th as this person disembarks the Sky Princess ship. The tourist will receive a gift bag containing local goodies and a plaque to mark this milestone for our city.

“We are excited to celebrate this breakthrough for our cruise ship industry at the port. The benefits these visits bring to our economy, small businesses and tour operators is considerable. This year’s annual economic impact is forecast to be at $8.1 million dollars. This milestone also marks many years of hard work from staff at the St. John’s Port Authority, the City, and other stakeholders who year after year welcome cruise passengers to our beautiful city,” said Councillor Debbie Hanlon, Council Representative for Cruise Tourism.

The return of cruise operations in 2022 has successfully restarted after a two-year hiatus. From June 12, the Port City of St. John’s has hosted 26 cruise ships with approximately 22,424 passengers. It is special to celebrate this milestone with the final ship here for this year.

This season, many passengers availed of tours around the city or visited historic sites. Visitors have enjoyed the Downtown Pedestrian Mall and have provided positive feedback on how friendly the city has been to them this season.

“Our unrivalled location, our welcoming spirit, diverse cultural experiences and access to all the amenities of a modern port city ensure that every visit is pleasant, safe and enjoyable,” said Bob McCarthy, Vice President, Development, St. John’s Port Authority. “We look forward to continuing to work with the City of St. John’s and many industry partners to increase the profile of our port as an internationally preferred cruise destination.”

Highlights of the 2022 season include:

• To date, 26 cruise ship visits to the Port City of St. John’s
• Six inaugural calls, visiting the Port city for the first time in 2022 included the Celebrity Summit, Nieuw Statendam, Borealis, Fridjof Nansen, Seabourn Venture, and Sky Princess
• Nine cruise ships used the Port City of St. John’s as their home port, where passengers can embark on a cruise ship for the first time. 

A full list of the cruise ships that came this year can be found on our website.