Space Coast News

Marine Towing of Tampa announced it is expanding its ship assist services to Florida's east coast following a deal with E.N. Bisso & Son to acquire towing assets formerly owned by SEACOR Holdings' Seabulk arm.In September 2023, SEACOR divested its U.S. harbor towing operations, selling to Bisso 12 tugs across ports in Florida and Alabama.Under a recently executed asset purchase agreement with Bisso, Marine Towing of Tampa acquired the Port Canaveral operations and assets from the SEACOR-Bisso deal and will operate them in Canaveral under a newly formed affiliate…

Women's International Shipping & Trading Association (WISTA) USA Florida Chapter participated in a sea turtle release with the Broward County Sea Turtle Conservation Program (BCSTCP) and Nova Southeastern University (NSU) on July 26, 2018.Forty nine WISTA members and guests attended the sea turtle hatchling release, which raised $1000 for the Broward County Sea Turtle Conservation Program.“As maritime professionals, WISTA members understand the significant role we can play to protect the habitats, nesting areas, and life cycle of sea creatures.

A little-known annual American commemoration is coming up again on May 22 - National Maritime Day. It was declared by Congress in 1933 to call attention to America’s proud maritime heritage and to honor the men and women who serve and have served as U.S. merchant mariners. It’s also a day to recognize and reflect on the rewards that America’s ports bring the country in terms of jobs, economic development, goods movement and international competitiveness. For the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA)—the unified and recognized voice of seaports in the Americas—National Maritime Day offers the nation’s ports a great opportunity to showcase the value of their facilities, operations and personnel to their respective communities.

Host of U.S. A little-known annual American commemoration is coming up again on May 22: National Maritime Day, declared by Congress in 1933 to call attention to America’s maritime heritage and to honor the men and women who serve and have served as U.S. merchant mariners. It’s also a day to recognize and reflect on the rewards that America’s ports bring the country in terms of jobs, economic development, goods movement and international competitiveness. For the American Association…

Re-emerging from a 24-day drydock at Grand Bahama Shipyard, Royal Caribbean’s Freedom of the Seas returned into service this weekend to offer vacationers one of the best cruise ships for incredible Caribbean’s adventures. The ship showcased its new features to more than 1,700 of the cruise line’s value travel agent partners on an exclusive two-night sailing before embarking on its first regular itinerary on Sunday, Feb. The newly revitalized Freedom of the Seas will amaze guests with a range of new tantalizing dining options, new staterooms categories, the new retro-chic R Bar lounge, and a bow-to-stern refresh of the entire ship’s furnishings.

Representatives from the U.S. Coast Guard, Federal, State, County and several members of the maritime community have received a Coast Guard Meritorious Team Commendation award during a ceremony held at the Canaveral Port Authority Maritime Center in Port Canaveral, Florida, informs the US Coast Guard. On July 1, 2014, the 584-foot bulk carrier J.S. Comet, sought refuge off Port Canaveral, Florida when 19 of the 21 crewmembers aboard were stricken with symptoms of food poisoning and were unable to continue to safely operate the vessel. The coordinated response involved five Coast Guard units, three fire departments, Cape Canaveral Hospital…

Further bolstering its position as Central Florida's largest cruise operator, Carnival Cruise Lines' Carnival Liberty departed on its inaugural voyage from Port Canaveral, Fla., this weekend, becoming the line's third year-round ship sailing from the Space Coast. With the arrival of Carnival Liberty, Carnival will increase its annual passenger count from Port Canaveral to 600,000 – more than any other cruise operator. On Carnival Liberty's new schedule from Port Canaveral, vacationers can select from a wide variety of five-, seven- and eight-day Caribbean itineraries conveniently departing from the Central Florida while enjoying a wide range of dining, bar and entertainment innovations that were added as part of the line's Fun Ship 2.0 product enhancement program.

Oct. 13-17 conference to feature keynote addresses from USDOT’s Deputy Secretary, Canada’s U.S. Ambassador and Disney Cruise Line’s President. For the first time in its 60-year history, the Canaveral Port Authority will serve as host of the American Association of Port Authorities’ (AAPA) annual convention, which takes place Oct. 13-17. And, for the first time in AAPA’s 102-year history, the business meetings for its international conference will be split between two locations: Port Canaveral, Fla.—one of the world’s busiest cruise ports with growing cargo; and Orlando, Fla.—one of the busiest American cities for conferences and conventions.

For the first time in its history, more than 3 million multi-day cruise passengers sailed from Port Canaveral, contributing $40 million in cruise revenue during the fiscal year ending September 30, also a record as newer and larger cruise ships and 66 additional ship calls helped boost passenger totals. Cruise traffic rose 16.08 per percent with 3,100,199 passengers. Overall, Port Canaveral’s total revenues surged dramatically to nearly $57.8 million, eclipsing the previous Port record of $51.2 in 2006 by 13 percent.

Beginning next year, Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Spirit will join Norwegian Dawn in weekly stops at Port Canaveral. In addition, the Norwegian Majesty will make a call in Port Canaveral next year, bringing the total number of port calls for Norwegian Cruise Line to 45 in the next two years. “Port Canaveral offers a wide variety of options to our guests. The shore excursion program we’ve introduced with Norwegian Dawn has been very successful and we’re looking forward to offering those options and more to our passengers onboard Norwegian Spirit and Norwegian Majesty next year,” says Andy Stuart, Executive Vice President of Marketing, Sales and Passenger Services for Norwegian Cruise Line.

The Canaveral Port Authority’s environmental education program received top honors from the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) in the 2002 awards competition. The Port also received several communications awards for its community outreach efforts. The AAPA Environmental Excellence Award was given for the Port’s community program, which includes educational videos, classroom education; coloring and activity books for children; and Port tours on the endangered manatee and beach protection. In addition, the environmental brochure received an AAPA Communications Award of Excellence. “We consider it a high priority to educate the community on the importance of protecting our natural resources,” says Malcolm “Mac” McLouth, Executive Director of the Canaveral Port Authority.

With the success of Sovereign of the Seas at Port Canaveral since May 2000, Royal Caribbean International has chosen to homeport its newest and largest vessel in the Central Florida market. “The addition of the Royal Caribbean’s largest-class cruise ship firmly establishes Port Canaveral as the location of choice for cruise lines wanting to tap into the lucrative drive-to Greater Orlando vacation market,” says Malcolm “Mac” McLouth, executive director of the Canaveral Port Authority. Still under construction in Finland, the 3,114-passenger Mariner of the Seas will begin sailing from Port Canaveral in November 2003, alternating seven-night Eastern and Western Caribbean itineraries with Sunday departures.