Barcelona to Cut Cruise Ship Capacity

Over the next five years Barcelona’s Adossat port will reduce its cruise capacity from seven terminals to five, Seatrade Cruise News reports. As part of the phased plan, the three oldest terminals (A, B, C) will be demolished, and a new one will be built. The new terminal will have shore power connectivity and the capacity to serve 7,000 passengers simultaneously.

Demolition of the old Terminal C is expected to be completed by the end of 2026. The new Terminal C, which is scheduled to open in 2028 though it won’t be at full capacity until 2030, will be used primarily by ships homeporting out of Barcelona, as well as smaller ships.

Additional projects that are part of the initiative include a 50-million-euro plan to overhaul a section of the quay where the A and B terminals are currently located. The overhauled area will offer improved guest services and house select cruise operations, including the connection to onshore power.

Also part of the initiative is a 90-million-euro investment to expand the Porta d’Europa bridge linking the wharf with the city, including bike and walking paths. The expanded bridge should be up and running some time in 2027.  

Scheduled shuttle service will run between the port and several transport centers to make getting to and from the port easier. New displays that provide visitors real-time information about the crowding in the city’s main tourist attractions is being designed to help improve the distribution of tourists in the hopes of easing congestion in some of the city’s busiest areas.

At the end of five years, Barcelona will have five cruise terminals, with four privately owned by cruise lines. Terminals D and E are operated by Carnival Corp.; Terminal H is operated by MSC Cruises Group; and Terminal G, which is currently under construction, is operated by Royal Caribbean Group.

The new Terminal C will be publicly owned and operated.

Barcelona first began attempting to scale back cruise operations in 2018 when it announced that most cruise operations would be moved from the center of the city to the Adossat wharf. By 2023, the city had entirely shut down the North Terminal, which was conveniently located at the foot of Las Ramblas. Despite this, the number of cruise passengers visiting Barcelona between 2018 and 204 increased by 20%, according to the Port of Barcelona.