Cruising can be a unique way of exploring some of the world’s most beautiful locations, with more and more people preferring this kind of travel.
The industry has surpassed the 2017 ocean cruise passenger projections, reaching 26.7 million cruise passengers globally up from a projection of 25.8 million.
For 2018, the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) is projecting another positive year-over-year growth for the industry with a passenger forecast of 28 million.
North America represented the largest ocean passenger volume in 2017 — 49 percent — with a total of more than 13 million ocean cruise passengers followed by Europe — 26 percent — with nearly seven million ocean cruise passengers.
In addition, Asia accounted for about 15 percent of total global ocean passenger volume in 2017, Australia/Pacific for 5.4 percent, South Central America for 3.2 percent and other destinations for 1.6 percent.
Popular destinations such as Miami, Barcelona and Shanghai have seen tourist numbers rise substantially through their ports.
The storymap below takes you on a tour of ten of the busiest cruise ports in the world.
The cruise map is created by Damien Kenny, Director of The Water Filter Men .
Note: The material presented in this article does not necessarily reflect the opinions of World Maritime News.