Key Aspects:
- Canada Place is celebrating 40 years of cruise operations in Vancouver.
- About 1.4 million cruise passengers are expected in 2026.
- The busiest day is expected on September 19, when nearly 20,000 passengers pass through the terminal.
Vancouver’s iconic Canada Place cruise terminal is celebrating 40 years of cruise operations, a milestone that arrives as the port prepares for one of its busiest seasons ever.
The first cruise ship to call at the terminal was Holland America Line’s Noordam on April 28, 1986. Since that first visit, more than 30 million cruise passengers have passed through the downtown Vancouver facility.
“Canada Place is without peer – for 40 years now our award-winning cruise terminal in picturesque downtown Vancouver has been a memorable part of countless cruise adventures to Alaska and beyond,” said Cliff Stewart, vice president of operations and supply chain at the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority.
Stewart credits the “collaborative and pioneering spirit of so many” as the reason behind the cruise port’s 40 years of success.
The anniversary comes as the 2026 cruise season is expected to bring record passenger traffic, with port officials projecting more than 1.4 million passengers passing through the cruise terminal this year.
Port officials estimate each cruise ship visit contributes roughly $3 million to the local economy.
Alaska sailings have now returned to Vancouver, with ships scheduled to arrive nearly every day between early May and late September. During those peak months, passenger activity will surge with multiple ship arrivals and departures.
Port officials estimate that between 40,000 and 50,000 passengers will move through the terminal between Friday and Monday on most peak-season weekends. Some days will be particularly busy.
Canada Place is scheduled to host its first five-ship day since 2019 on July 25, 2026, bringing thousands of embarking and disembarking passengers through the facility at once.
Royal Caribbean’s Ovation of the Seas, carrying up to 4,182 passengers; Princess Cruises’ Grand Princess, with up to 2,610 guests; and Holland America Line’s Koningsdam, carrying up to 2,650 passengers will be the biggest ships arriving that day.
The 930-passenger Viking Ocean Cruise’s Viking Orion and Hurtigruten Expeditions’ Roald Amundsen, with up to 490 guests, will also be on deck.
“With the cruise terminal on track to experience five of its top 10 busiest weekends ever this summer, we look forward to working with our cruise partners to ensure Canada Place and Vancouver continue to play their part delivering unforgettable moments for visitors,” said Stewart.
Busy Weekends Expected
Officials say traffic is expected to peak later in the season, with the weekend of September 18 – 21, 2026, projected to become the busiest weekend in Canada Place history with about 56,000 passengers expected to pass through the terminal.
That weekend will see Celebrity Cruises’ Celebrity Edge and Celebrity Solstice, Seabourne’s Encore, Holland America Line’s Nieuw Amsterdam, and Royal Caribbean’s Serenade of the Seas and Ovation of the Seas along with Saturday’s four-ship arrival.
That day, September 19, 2026, will see nearly 20,000 passengers move through the facility in one day from Princess Cruises’ Discovery Princess and Grand Princess, Oceania Cruises’ Oceania Riviera, and Koningsdam. It will be the single busiest day of the season.
Norwegian Cruise Line’s Encore will be the last ship of the 2026 season on October 13, 2026.
