The port of A Coruña reached a historic milestone in cruise traffic this October, registering 313,454 passengers in 121 port calls since the beginning of the year.
Never before had the number of passengers exceeded 300,000 in a single year in any port on the Cantabrian-Atlantic coast, and the port of A Coruña has already surpassed this figure with the last two months of the year still to go.
Despite the complications caused by storms in Galicia in recent weeks, six ship calls are expected in November and another four in December, bringing the total for 2023 to over 130 ships and more than 325,000 passengers.
Last year, 2022, the port had already shattered its previous records, with 222,723 tourists across 136 port calls, making this year's passenger figures particularly remarkable. As of the end of October, growth stood at 58%.
The president of the Port Authority, Martín Fernández Prado, expressed his satisfaction with the evolution of this sector, underlining its importance to the city's economy.
The annual economic return is estimated at more than 25 million euros, taking into account not only the direct spending by passengers and crew, mainly in commerce and hospitality, but also all the repercussions in the tourism sector, transport, provisioning of ships, port fees, towing, mooring and pilotage services, consignee companies, tour operators, etc.
In 2009, the port of A Coruña received a total of 56 ship calls and 54,191 passengers. From then on, a period of growth began, driven by the Port Authority's efforts to establish direct contact with shipping companies and other industry stakeholders, its focus on providing excellent service to ships and passengers, and an attractive tariff policy.
As a result, it has consolidated itself in recent years as the leading port of the Cantabrian-Atlantic coast, and as the main entry point for foreign tourists to A Coruña.
Fernández Prado points out that “the main challenge now is to maintain and improve the quality of service, and to support the shipping companies in their commitment to sustainability.” Improvement work has already begun at the Transatlantic Pier, including preliminary work for the installation of electrical power for cruise ships, allowing them to turn off their auxiliary engines during their stay in the city.
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