Port Canaveral sets record for passengers coming through the port

PORT CANAVERAL, Fla. — Activity at Port Canaveral is exceeding expectations and setting a record for passengers coming through the port.

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Port Canaveral projected that 500,000 cruise passengers would move through the port in December.

We now know that 700,000 passengers passed through the port last month.

On Monday, there were four ships in port with a steady flow of cruise passengers, with some of them sailing for the very first time.

“So, when I first started back cruising last February, it was lower and I feel like now it’s almost back to normal capacity,” said cruise passenger Karla Lee. “Honestly, I feel like people are back to cruising.”

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Another passenger, Niki Sheppard told Channel 9 that she and her family are sailing for the first time since 2016, and part of helping to make that decision was the fact that COVID-19 restrictions have been lifted.

“Now that the restrictions are gone. We’re back in the game,” Sheppard said.

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Port Canaveral is also entering the new year with something else it’s never had before -- 13 homeported ships - with the December arrival of The Norwegian Prima.

In the past three months, 1.7 million passengers have moved through the port.

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