Key Aspects:
- Nassau, Bahamas, has broken its annual passenger record for the third time in 2025.
- The port welcomed an estimated 6.1 million cruise guests, exceeding the high of 5.6 million guests in 2024.
- Looking at the overall, the Bahamas welcomed an unprecedented 12.5 million visitors, the majority of which came from cruise tourism.
Nassau, Bahamas, is batting three for three. For the third year in a row, Nassau has set a new cruise passenger record.
In 2025, the world’s busiest transit cruise port welcomed an estimated 6.1 million passengers across nearly 1,600 ship calls.
“This milestone year for tourism underscores the critical role Nassau Cruise Port continues to play as the primary gateway for visitors to The Bahamas,” said Mike Maura, Jr. CEO & Director of Nassau Cruise Port.
“Welcoming more than six million cruise passengers in a single year reflects the confidence of our cruise partners, the strength of the destination, and the impact of ongoing investments to enhance the passenger experience and operational efficiency at the port,” Maura continued.
Read Also: Nassau Cruise Port – Piers, Getting Around and What’s Nearby
This total represents an approximate 9.5% increase over the previous year. In 2024, the port welcomed around 5.6 million cruise guests across 1,445 ship calls, which was a new record at the time.
2023 was also a record-breaking year, with Nassau welcoming an estimated 4.4 million passengers. This was an improvement upon 3.2 million guests in 2022.
Port Upgrades Pay Off
Port authorities have been working hard to secure Nassau’s spot as a top cruise destination and put $300 million into revitalizing the port, which launched in its upgraded form in May of 2023.
This project included six new and expanded berths capable of accommodating the largest ships in the world, with vessels like Royal Caribbean’s Icon-class ships capable of bringing up to 7,600 guests to the port in one go.
Additional enhancements have been made to the downtown area, such as adding more and better shopping and dining options, and rolling out free Wi-Fi for visitors in 2024.
These improvements have definitely paid off, with the cruise port breaking records for the largest number of passengers to visit the port in one day on at least two separate occasions in 2025.
Six ships visited Nassau on March 11, 2025, shattering the daily passenger record by bringing a whopping 30,538 passengers to the port. This record was once again blown out of the water on April 8, 2025, when 31,011 cruise guests visited Nassau in one day.
Five ships were in the port that day, including Liberty of the Seas, Utopia of the Seas, Carnival Paradise, Carnival Celebration, and Disney Dream.
More Growth in the Bahamas
As the capital of the Bahamas, Nassau plays a big role in the country’s booming tourism industry. Like Nassau, the Bahamas also set a new visitor record encompassing guests coming by sea and plane, reaching a whopping 12.5 million.
Cruise tourism was the primary driver behind the growth, accounting for 86.5% of the total arrivals. This amounts to more than 10.6 million cruise passenger arrivals.
“In 2025, The Bahamas welcomed an unprecedented 12.5 million visitors, the highest total arrivals ever recorded,” Chester Cooper, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism, Investments and Aviation, told Parliament.
“Visitor arrivals grew 11.4 per cent year-over-year, surpassing 2024’s record and exceeding pre-pandemic 2019 levels by more than 72 per cent,” Cooper highlighted.
In addition to Nassau, Bahamian destinations like Grand Bahama, Bimini, the Berry Islands, and Eleuthera showed significant growth. These popular ports are all home to private cruise destinations.
Notably, the Berry Islands are home to Royal Caribbean’s Perfect Day at CocoCay and Norwegian Cruise Line’s Great Stirrup Cay. Eleuthera is where guests can visit Princess Cruises’ Princess Cays and Disney Cruise Line’s Disney Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point. Carnival’s new Celebration Key is on Grand Bahama, while the adults-only Virgin Voyages has a private beach club on Bimini.
It’s also worth mentioning that MSC Ocean Cay is another popular stop just for MSC Cruises guests. The 95-acre private island is located within the Bimini chain of islands in the western Bahamas.
