Palm Beach Doesn’t Need Megaships to Justify a Better Cruise Terminal

A $43 million cruise expansion would still leave Port of Palm Beach unable to accommodate the very large ships sailing from Port Everglades and PortMiami. That limitation needn’t be a failure. I like the more practical ambition here: give ships the port can serve a more flexible berth and improve the facilities that get passengers aboard.

Commissioners voted Thursday to seek competitive bids for the proposed terminal and berth work at the Riviera Beach port. No construction contract has been awarded. The improvements were identified as a priority in the port’s 2023 Strategic Master Plan.

For a port handling more than 300,000 cruise passengers annually with just one homeported vessel, there is a sensible case for broadening its options. Whether those options ultimately justify a $43 million investment will depend on more than the ability to accommodate a longer ship.

The boarding bridge deserves some attention

The proposal includes additional mooring dolphins to accommodate longer vessels and a replacement passenger boarding bridge. Port Executive Director Michael Meekins said the bridge would offer “a lot more flexibility and movement up and down to meet multiple vessels if we need to.”

That is a useful improvement, one that gives the port more choices when pursuing future homeport business. It is a more concrete benefit than a broad promise of cruise growth.

The shoreside work is similarly practical: a parking garage, increased screening capacity and more baggage laydown space at the approximately 40,000-square-foot terminal. A longer berth alone does nothing to expand the space available for screening passengers or handling their luggage.

It also makes greater use of an existing 165-acre port site that accommodates cargo operations and more than 30 on-site tenants and users. Cruise expansion has to fit into that working port. The wider master plan considers development within the current boundaries and possible expansion beyond them, alongside cargo and transportation improvements.

Better facilities still need ships

Margaritaville at Sea Paradise has operated from Palm Beach since April 2022. The approximately 722-foot ship carries up to 1,680 passengers and is the size benchmark for the berth proposal. The port’s cruise services include Bahamas sailings.

Port Commission Chair Blair Ciklin cited Viking as an example of a line he could envision operating from Riviera Beach. That is an illustration of possible future business, not a homeport announcement.

Ciklin said expanded cruise offerings could “encourage longer stays, support local restaurants and businesses,” while contributing to regional tourism. Meekins also pointed to potential increases in airport arrivals and hotel stays, along with additional jobs.

Those benefits depend on the cruise business that follows the construction. The passenger-handling improvements have a clearer connection to the cruise operation Palm Beach already runs.

I’d judge this project by how well it serves that existing business and how credibly it opens the berth to other vessels. Palm Beach can remain a smaller-ship port and still improve substantially. The expansion can create room for growth. It cannot book the next ship.