Royal Caribbean Group, the parent company for Royal Caribbean Cruise Line, Celebrity Cruises, and Silversea, will build a new cruise terminal in Ravenna, Italy. The city is located in the northeast of Italy on the Adriatic coast. It is an excellent base of operations for the eastern Mediterranean, Adriatic Sea, and the Western Mediterranean.
The company was awarded the tender to construct and operate the innovative new 10,000-square-meter, 27 million euro, cruise terminal in Porto Corsini, a short drive from the center of Ravenna.
Royal Caribbean Partnership with Ravenna Port Authority
The tender to build a new terminal building in Ravenna is the first step for Royal Caribbean, private investment company VSL Club SpA and the port authority in Ravenna to operate and revitalize the port area in the city.
The partnership seeks to transform the port area into a new terminal building, a Park of Dunes green space project, 12 hectares of landscaping, entertainment areas for visitors and residents, and a focus on making the entire area sustainable. The new terminal building will also have the capability for shore-power, enabling ships to turn off their engines in port.
With the negative impact of large cruise ships in Venice and the negative public perception that has given to cruising, the industry has been searching for new initiatives in the area. Ravenna will be ideally suited to act as a homeport for cruise ships when it is completed in 2024.
Located just 140 km from Venice, the historic city can still be part of a cruise visit, either as a pre-or post-cruise experience or as a port of call. Other important ports such as Split and Dubrovnik in Croatia, Kotor in Montenegro, and the Greek Islands and other Italian ports are all within easy reach of the new terminal building.
The amount of passengers passing through the terminal is expected to increase to 300.000 per year, making it not just an exciting investment opportunity for the Royal Caribbean Group. The terminal will be able to offer significant employment opportunities for locals; estimates are between 100-200 people who will find employment during homeporting operations.
Royal Caribbean Expects Strong Tourism Rebound
The Royal Caribbean group is well known for investing and developing areas that they believe can play a significant role in the rebound of cruising this year and the following years. Although a majority of cruise ships are operational right now, the industry is expected to take some time to return to pre-pandemic numbers. Yet significant growth will be possible with investments such as in Ravenna, Royal Caribbean believes:
“We are so honored to partner with the Ravenna Port Authority on this exciting cutting-edge project which will return growth to Ravenna and bring a new era of cruising to the region. Royal Caribbean has assembled a world-class team that is committed to a high-quality experience through sustainable development while embracing the extraordinary natural beauty and warm hospitality this region has become so well known for.” said Joshua Carroll, vice president, Destination Development at Royal Caribbean Group.
At a press conference in Ravenna this week, Daniele Rossi, president of the Ravenna Port Authority, said:
“The fact that an international cruise operator of such worldwide importance as Royal Caribbean Group has decided to invest in our port is an important signal for the entire Ravenna area. I’d particularly like to underline in this regard that the professionalism and reliability of Royal Caribbean Group are, among other things, demonstrated by the fact that the proposal presented takes into the greatest consideration the issue of environmental sustainability and is based on a very thorough analysis of the territorial context in which it will have to be inserted.
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Atelier(s) Alfonso Femia and engineering consultants at RINA Consulting will design the new terminal building. When the terminal is not facilitating cruise ships, the terminal and walkways will be accessible to the public. It will also function as a multifunctional building housing sports competitions, artistic and literary presentations, and much more.