Nearly 200,000 passengers aboard 110 cruise ships docked at the port between September and November.
The Port of Malaga welcomed 193,662 passengers aboard 110 cruise ships between September and November, thus ending the high cruise season with a very positive figure, since this type of traffic has increased by 12% in relation to the same period of the previous year.
Regarding the number of port calls, the Port of Malaga has experienced a slight increase of 4.76% compared to the same period in 2013.
Data September-November 2014
| Number of scales | Number of passengers | |
| September | 33 | 57.317 |
| October | 37 | 73.080 |
| November | 40 | 63.265 |
| TOTAL | 110 | 193.662 |
Comparison September-November 2013/2014
| 2013 | 2014 | % Variation | |
| Number of Scales | 105 | 110 | 4,76% |
| Number of Passengers | 172.901 | 193.662 | 12% |
Cruise traffic September-November 2014
The high autumn cruise season began on September 4 with the arrival of the 'Funchal', a 152.65-meter-long ship with a capacity to accommodate 570 passengers, ending on November 28 with the arrival of 3 ships: 'Costa Fortuna', 'MSC Fantasia' and 'Oriana'.
- Large ships
One of the most anticipated visits took place during the month of September with the arrival, for the first time, of the ship 'Oasis of the Seas', which chose Malaga as its first European port of call.
A total of 5,754 people (passengers and crew) arrived aboard the world's largest cruise ship on its maiden voyage, causing great excitement among the nearly 100,000 citizens who came to the port area to welcome this giant, which was quite an event in the capital.
Following its visit, Málaga received recognition from Royal Caribbean, which praised the excellent joint operation between the port, the shipping agent, and Cruceros Málaga. The ship's captain echoed this sentiment during its stop in Barcelona for the Seatrade Med cruise trade show.
On the other hand, the Port of Malaga carried out, on October 22, a unique operation in Spain, in collaboration with the Airport and Customs, corresponding to the embarkation and disembarkation of passengers and their luggage.
The ship 'Ventura', from P&O Cruises, belonging to the Carnival Group, arrived at the port facility from which 2,309 passengers disembarked with their corresponding luggage, transferred directly from the ship to the airport.
Conversely, a total of 2,319 passengers boarded the same ship to begin their journey from the port, coming from the airport, who checked their luggage in their city of origin and it was transferred directly to the ship.
This operation involved the movement of approximately 5,000 cruise passengers (which entailed a total of 95 bus transfers) and about 6,000 suitcases (which were taken to the airport from the ship and to the ship from the airport in 10 trucks).
For its part, the Malaga Customs Office collaborated in the operations by coordinating the procedures to carry out its actions at the Cruise Terminal and at Malaga-Costa del Sol Airport.
The operation, which was carried out for the first time in a Spanish port last March from the same ship, represents a high benefit to the passenger and facilitates the work of the shipping company, being an important boost in the service offered by the capital to cruise companies.
Another of the most striking visits occurred last September with the arrival of the 'Disney Magic' with more than 2,000 passengers on board, which made its first stop during the month of May of this year.
Disney Cruise Lines' choice of the Port of Malaga is a very positive promotion for the port in the eyes of other cruise lines: Disney has very strong security measures and, therefore, the choice of our port demonstrates that Malaga is a safe port.
Other companies such as MSC Cruises and Costa Cruises, already traditional in our port, as well as Cunard, Aida Cruises and Holland America, also positioned their large ships in the port area between the months of September and November.
- Exclusive ships
It is worth highlighting the commitment of shipping companies that have smaller and more exclusive ships, such as 'Seadream I', 'Seadream II', 'Bremen', 'Sea Cloud', 'Star Clippers' and 'Wind Star', which, due to their technical characteristics, have the possibility of docking at the Palmeral terminal, from which passengers can walk into the historic center of the capital.
An example of this is shown in the level of satisfaction of the users of the company Azamara, belonging to the Royal Caribbean Group, who, in surveys carried out on board, rated the stop in Malaga with a very high rating.
A total of 17 port calls by this type of vessel were made during the peak autumn season.
- Home port
19.29% of the total passengers started and/or finished their journey from the Port of Malaga between the months of September and November.
The cruise ships that made regular port calls were the following:
– 'Empress', belonging to the Spanish company Pullmantur. This ship, which has a length of 210.80 meters and a maximum capacity to accommodate 2,020 passengers, made 5 home port calls between the months of September and October.
– 'Thomson Dream' and 'Thomson Celebration'. Thomson Cruises continued to rely on Malaga as a home port since it began its first such calls with the 'Thomson Majesty' last spring. The cruise line made five calls in November.
In addition, other ships such as 'Sovereign', 'Seadream I' or 'Sea Cloud', among others, also made occasional stops at the port facility.
Ø Economic expenditure in the city
According to the latest report on the economic impact of cruise ship traffic in the capital, prepared by SOPDE, the average expenditure per passenger is €62.55. Therefore, if the aforementioned figure is taken as the average expenditure, the economic impact on the capital could reach €12 million.
For their part, it's not just cruise passengers who visit the city; a significant percentage of the crew also visit the area where the ship is docked during their free time. Typically, about 30% of the crew disembark.
A study by CLIA (Cruise Lines International Association) shows that the average crew member spends €23 at the destination. Based on this figure, the economic impact on the capital between September and November could have been around €700,000.
Cruise traffic forecast December 2014
During the month of December, the Port of Malaga expects to receive the arrival of approximately 21,000 passengers aboard 9 cruise ships.
It is worth noting that the Norwegian Cruise Line is making 3 home port calls with the ship 'Norwegian Spirit', which has a maximum capacity to accommodate approximately 3,000 passengers.
General forecast 2014 and comparison 2013
| 2013 | 2014 (Forecast) | % Variation | |
| Number of Scales | 248 | 228 | – 8% |
| Number of Passengers | 397.416 | 413.477 | 4% |
Following the trend, the Port of Malaga anticipates a decrease in the number of ships, but those that do arrive have greater capacity, so the number of passengers increases, as can be seen in the table above.
Cruise traffic forecast 2015
The Port of Malaga expects the arrival of 478,433 passengers (counting the maximum capacities of the ships) on board 222 cruise ships.
The port facility will once again be based at ships from the Thomson Cruises company (although to a lesser extent, since the shipping company will be carrying out maintenance work on some of its ships) and from Pullmantur (a company that operates in the Spanish market).
It is also worth highlighting the various stopovers by exclusive ships at the Palmeral terminal.
In addition, the Port of Malaga expects the arrival, for the first time, of 7 cruise ships, including ships from Norwegian Cruise Line, Windstar Cruises, Aida Cruises and Princess Cruises.
Finally, the day with the highest number of ships is October 29, 2015, as 6 cruise ships coincide in the port.
