Royal Caribbean Cruising is Booming on Galveston Island

When the Allure of the Seas cruised into Galveston on Tuesday, Nov. 8, it signaled a new cruising era for Galveston Island. This 1,187 feet long and 215 feet wide cruise ship arrived in time for the long-awaited ribbon-cutting opening of the $125 million Royal Caribbean cruise terminal.

Allure of the Seas – Photo by Jill Weinlein

Now Galveston has three cruise terminals offering cruise passengers more cruise ships leaving from the Texas port during the booming cruise industry.

New Royal Caribbean Cruise Terminal – Photo by Jill Weinlein

With a capacity of 6,780-passengers, the Allure of the Seas is among the largest ship in the Royal Caribbean’s fleet. President & CEO Royal Caribbean International Michael Bayley was the first to step up to the podium to greet and welcome a crowd of over 200 invited guests to the special morning ribbon-cutting presentation. “I’m super excited to bring the latest cruise ship Allure of the Seas to Galveston, Texas. It’s probably the second largest cruise ship on the planet” said Bayley. “It’s an Oasis class ship and we could only bring this size ship to Texas, because we built this new terminal. No other terminal could manage the scale of the operation that comes with this size of a ship.”

Inside the Royal Caribbean Cruise Terminal – Photo Jill Weinlein

He also announced the introduction of a new class of ship, The Icon of the Seas. It’s a new class of mega-cruise ships coming out possibly late 2023, or early 2024. “The Icon of the Seas is absolutely the ultimate family vacation coming to Texas,” said Bayley.

Embarkation is smooth and easy at the new Royal Caribbean Cruise Terminal – Jill Weinlein

As soon as you walk around the terminal it looks good and feels good. There is a lot of new technology including facial recognition security scanning, making it easy and flawless to leave the ship.

No other cruise line terminal is a complete renewable energy terminal. Bayley told the crowd that the ships are not drawing any energy from the grid, instead solar panels will provide clean energy. “It’s only energy is from solar panels. No where else in the world does such a terminal exist,” shared Bayley.

Port of Galveston welcomes Royal Caribbean International – Photo Jill Weinlein

Galveston Wharves Port Director & CEO Rodger Reese, oversees one of the nation’s major cruise and cargo ports. The Port of Galveston is the fourth most popular cruise port in the United States, hosting more than 1 million cruise passengers a year. This new terminal will bring 1.4 billion in local business revue, and 5.6 million in state and local taxes that goes back into the Galveston community. “It’s taken a lot of passion and collaboration that took 15 months to happen,” shared Reese. “This new terminal creates new Maritime jobs and careers that are important in Galveston, TX. It’s a major revenue producer for the city and region.”

There are 1,900 parking spots for RCCL passengers to drive and park their cars. Part of the parking lot is shaded with thousands of solar panels.

Mayor Craig Brown, President & CEO Galveston Regional Chamber of Commerce Gina Spagnola, Port of Galveston Roger Rees, U.S. Representative Randy Weber – Photo Jill Weinlein

Before the ribbon-cutting ceremony, the Mayor of Galveston Craig Brown was excited to have this cruise terminal open as the holidays approach. There are a lot of people in the community who have worked on this to make it happen. He declared today November 9, 2022, Royal Caribbean International Day.

Next to speak, U.S. Representative Randy Weber welcomed Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas to the Port of Galveston. He ended with “Galveston is the ‘allure’ of Texas, and the ‘allure’ of the United States. Now that the Royal Caribbean is are coming up with the Icon on the Seas, we want Galveston to be the ‘Icon’ of the Gulf Coast and beyond.”

Reserve a Royal Caribbean Allure of the Seas cruise from Galveston, TX. Book now to receive 30% off all guests on select cruises and kids sail for free.