PortMiami Reaches 10M Cruise Passengers to Reclaim World’s Largest Title
PortMiami is surpassing 10 million cruise ship passenger movements in FY 2026, which returns it to the position of the busiest cruise home port in the world. It is the first time any port has handled more than 10 million passengers and pushes the southern Florida port back above its central Florida rival, Port Canaveral.
Miami officials reported they hit the 10 million figure on September 14, which is remarkable growth from FY 2025 when the port had another record at 8,564,225 passenger movements. (Ports count embarking and disembarking passengers independently, meaning it is around 5 million individual passengers for the 11.5 months of FY 2026.)
“Breaking the 10 million passenger threshold is a testament to PortMiami’s unwavering dedication to service, sustainability and economic vitality,” said Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava. “This extraordinary milestone underscores our port’s role as a global gateway and a driver of job creation, tourism and local business growth.”
The final numbers are more than a week and a half away, as Florida’s ports operate on an October 1 – September 30 fiscal year. The number, however, clearly assures PortMiami first place this year after having fallen to second place in 2025 as Port Canaveral handled approximately 8.6 million passengers.
The growth at the ports is emblematic of the industry’s renewed rapid expansion and the introduction of more mega cruise ships. Both PortMiami and Port Canaveral are regularly servicing cruise ships that carry 6,000 or more passengers and have become homeports to ships at 225,000 or more gross tons.
The ports are driving the growth through investments in their infrastructure and new terminal development in partnership with the major cruise lines. PortMiami is the location of the largest terminal, Terminal AA at the eastern end of the port, which is home to MSC Cruises and can handle up to three ships at one time.
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PortMiami has not published its forecasts for next year, but it expects continued strong growth, as does Port Canaveral. In August, Port Canaveral presented its plan to its board of directors, reporting it would be around 9 million cruise passengers in FY 2026. Next year it is scheduled to receive new ships, including Carnival Festivale and MSC World Atlantic, and that will help drive the port to an expected 10.9 million cruise passengers for FY 2027. Port Canaveral projects it will have 1,213 port calls in FY 2027, up from 1,080 this year and 1,038 last year. Cruise-related income accounts for about 87 percent of Port Canaveral’s operating revenues.
PortMiami officials highlighted that the record number of cruise passengers is a major contributor to Miami-Dade County’s economy. In addition to direct jobs in the port, it points to the creation of jobs in the service- and tourism-related industries and the revenues for passengers who visit the attractions and restaurants and often have pre- or post-cruise stays.
