Royal Caribbean and Carnival are getting ready to sail out of the Port of Baltimore as the first cruise departures from the port since the March 26 collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge.
The Port of Baltimore announced that Vision of the Seas, owned by Royal Caribbean, will embark on a five-night voyage on May 25 from Baltimore to Bermuda.
The Carnival Legend will depart Baltimore on May 26.
“Baltimore is back,” the Port of Baltimore posted on social media.
“We are extremely grateful to the officials and incredible first responders in Baltimore, who’ve shown great leadership and resolve in this difficult time, as well as our supportive partners in Norfolk, whose rapid response allowed us to continue to deliver our scheduled sailings for our guests,” said Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line. “It’s been our goal to resume operations in Baltimore as soon as possible, and after working closely with local, state and federal agencies, we look forward to a successful return.”
The cargo ship Dali crashed into the Key Bridge in late March, killing six construction workers, knocking down the bridge and halting access to and from the Port of Baltimore.
The Port of Baltimore services cruise ships from Royal Caribbean, Carnival and Norwegian.
A Carnival spokesperson told CBS News that the company expects a less-than-$10 million impact on adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, as well as its adjusted net income for 2024.
A Carnival cruise ship was expected to return to Baltimore in April, but after the Key Bridge collapse, it ported in Norfolk, Virginia.
Regina Ali, a spokesperson for AAA, was on that Carnival ship when the cargo ship lost power and caused the bridge collapse.
“I’m looking and I’m like, ‘Wait a minute, this is in Maryland and it was so surreal,’” Ali said.
Since then, cruise ships originally slated for Baltimore have been routed to Norfolk, with guests provided complimentary bus service to Baltimore.
Baltimore’s port is the 29th-largest cruise port in the country, with 444,000 passengers moving through it in 2023, according to the Cruise Lines International Association.
WJZ is a media partner of The Baltimore Banner.
