Despite a deep recession that has put a crimp in vacation budgets, a record number of cruise ship passengers and voyages are expected at the port of Baltimore this year.
Last week, Royal Caribbean launched year-round cruise service from the city, and its Enchantment of the Seas cruise liner set sail for the first time from its new home port in Locust Point.
As more people are choosing the sometimes deeply discounted cruise vacations, Baltimore's piece of the industry is benefitting from being a "drive-to" location. Cruise lines recognize the size and affluence of the population within driving distance of Baltimore's port and are expanding trips based out of the four-year-old terminal.
"We see a lot of consumer demand here," said Ken Muskat, vice president of sales for Royal Caribbean, which is offering five- to 12-night trips to Bermuda, the Caribbean, the Bahamas, New England and Canada.
Royal Caribbean's decision to expand to year-round trips out of Baltimore with a larger, 2,252-passenger ship came after a survey of the market from the past five years, during which time the Grandeur of the Seas sailed from the port on seasonal trips and attracted many passengers who would drive as many as three or four hours to the port to avoid flying, he said.
Vacationers boarding at the cruise terminal Friday said the convenience of driving adds to the appeal of spending days at sea, jumping on bungee trampolines, bellying up to buffets or simply sitting by a pool.
"We'll go wherever the ships in Baltimore will go," said passenger Peggy Barnabei, who boarded the Enchantment of the Seas with her husband, Arnold, after an hour-and-a-half drive from Harrisburg, Pa. "I can bring as much luggage as I want. Cruises are relaxing."
Royal Caribbean's expansion sets the stage for another record year at Locust Point, where the state's first-ever terminal dedicated to cruising was built in 2006. Baltimore has 91 trips set for this year that will serve an estimated 190,000 passengers, said Richard Scher, a port spokesman. That would surpass last year's record of 81 voyages and 167,000 passengers.
Baltimore's cruise business generated a local economic impact last year of $80 million and is on track to contribute $91 million this year. About 500 jobs, 220 of them at the port, are generated by cruise activity in Maryland, Scher said. To handle the increase of passengers and accommodate different cruise ships, port officials are planning a $2.9 million adjustable gangway with heating and air-conditioning that would lead from the terminal to the ship. The proposal goes to the state Board of Public Works this week.
Kathy Broadwater, deputy executive director of the Maryland Port Administration, said Baltimore's proximity to densely populated areas and high median household incomes are driving the growth. "I don't think any other port on the East Coast, except New York, can bring together those two factors," she said.
Baltimore now has the sixth-busiest cruise port on the East Coast in terms of passengers, behind four ports in Florida and one in New York, Scher said.
Last spring, Carnival Cruise Lines became the first to offer a year-round schedule from Baltimore. And last fall, Celebrity, which had discontinued cruises out of Baltimore in 2004, returned to Locust Point with a new offering of winter cruises.
Carnival returned after a limited schedule in 2002 and 2003. The cruise line now offers about 50 voyages annually to the Bahamas, Florida and the eastern Caribbean.
"It's part of an overall strategy of making cruises easier for people to get to," said Carnival spokesman Vance Gulliksen. "It makes cruising more affordable for a larger number of people, and it's been successful."
Cruise lines nationally carried a record 13.4 million passengers in 2009, up from 13 million in 2008, according to the Cruise Lines International Association.
"People may cut back on some things, but people need a vacation, and they're trying to find a way to do it that stretches their vacation dollar," said Bob Sharak, executive vice president of marketing and distribution for the association. "Nothing delivers like a cruise."
Pricing promotions helped boost business, Sharak said. He estimates cruise lines shaved 12 percent to 14 percent off their ticket prices last year compared with 2008.
Cruise veterans Tony and Rita Armistead, retired teachers from St. Louis who flew in for the Enchantment's New England cruise, said they were initially unsure about Baltimore as a departure port because they didn't know much about the city.
The couple said they were pleasantly surprised by the Cruise Maryland Terminal's efficiency and by Baltimore's downtown, where they visited before the cruise and rode the water taxi to harbor attractions and restaurants.
"We'll come back here," Tony Armistead said.
lorraine.mirabella@baltsun.com
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