Bahamas recorded whopping 9.1M cruise visitors in 2024

The Bahamas had a record-breaking cruise season in 2024, welcoming more than 9.1 million passengers in 2024. As per statistics, the Nassau Cruise Port set a record for the 2nd consecutive year as a total of 5.6 million passengers arrived throughout the previous year.

According to the reports, the figures showcase a whopping 6M increase from the previous year as in 2023, the Nassau Port welcomed 4.4 million passengers while in 2022, the port welcomed a total of 3.2 million cruise visitors.  

Reportedly, the Nassau Cruise Port is the busiest and largest transit cruise port across the Caribbean region. The major influx of visitors directly contributed to a predicted $2.6 billion in annual tourism revenues which benefitted a wide range of industries from retail and dining to tour operators as well as artisans. 

The Bahamas also enjoyed a year over year increase in total visitor arrivals with reports of increase in stayovers. 

The officials said that this growth was evident by the first half of 2024 as the island saw a 14 percent increase in arrivals from January to June, with the arrival of 5.7 million individuals.  

Meanwhile, Grand Bahama, Eleuthera and Abaco also saw notable growth in arrivals with increases of 6.8 percent, 2.7 percent and 3.8 percent respectively. 

While sharing the statistics, CEO of Nassau Cruise Port, Mike Maura Jr expressed his pride and said that this is the second year in a row that the port has reached this milestone. He added that this achievement is a testament to the dedication, hard work and partnership of the talented team, the valued partners as well as the Bahamian people.  

According to Mike, the Nassau could not have reached this milestone without the support of the stakeholders, including the Government of the Bahamas, cruise line partners, local businesses as well as community. He said that they are shaping the future of Bahamian tourism, and he is excited to see the continued growth of Nassau Cruise Port as a gateway to The Bahamas and a source of opportunity for everyone.