Major global cruise lines set to sharply increase Busan port calls next year

Major global cruise lines are expected to significantly increase their calls at Busan port starting next year.

The Busan Port Authority announced Thursday that it visited MSC Cruises' Americas division, Royal Caribbean Group and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings in Miami on Monday and Tuesday, holding talks on expanding Busan port calls, developing the port as a turnaround and homeport destination, and improving cruise terminal operations and infrastructure.

The three groups are global cruise companies with specialized brands across market segments — from large-scale to premium and luxury — and commanding fleets, giving them significant influence over worldwide cruise itineraries and fleet deployment.

At MSC Cruises' Americas division, BPA officials met with the president of Celebrity Cruises and others to discuss expanding Busan port calls, turnaround operations, attracting luxury brands and the direction of cruise terminal management. At Royal Caribbean Group's headquarters, talks centered on Asian fleet deployment, Busan's role in the region and plans to expand extended-stay cruise offerings, with Executive Vice President Jaime Castillo, who oversees the group's port and terminal service quality, leading the discussions.

At Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings' headquarters, BPA officials discussed Busan port's medium- to long-term development direction with Senior Executive Vice President Juan Kuryla, who previously served as CEO of PortMiami — the world's largest cruise port — and now oversees the group's global port, terminal and tourism facility development.

BPA plans to follow up with the senior executives of each group to review the facilities and operational conditions needed to develop Busan's competitiveness as a turnaround and homeport, and to continue cooperation.

Through the meetings, BPA finalized a total of 127 port calls at Busan for 2027 — up 40 calls, or about 46 percent, from 87 this year. MSC Cruises will increase its Busan calls from 23 in 2026 to 37 in 2027. Royal Caribbean Group will expand from 54 calls in 2026 to 74 in 2027, and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings will grow from 10 calls in 2026 to 16 in 2027.

Following the meeting with MSC, the BPA delegation toured MSC's dedicated cruise terminal in Miami, closely examining the baggage handling, automated check-in, security screening and customs, immigration and quarantine systems that enable large-scale homeport operations.

The terminal is designed to process roughly 5,000 passengers and up to 6,000 pieces of luggage from a single large cruise ship within about two hours, with baggage drop-off, sorting, check-in and customs, immigration and quarantine facilities integrated into a seamless system. The delegation focused particularly on passenger baggage handling and check-in facilities — the core of homeport operations — and assessed elements that could be applied to upgrading Busan's cruise terminal facilities and operational processes.

BPA said securing homeport competitiveness requires more than expanding physical capacity. It plans to develop specific improvement measures built around an efficient, integrated process that moves passengers and baggage simultaneously in a short time, combining baggage handling, check-in and customs, immigration and quarantine functions into a single workflow.

Through the discussions with the global cruise lines, BPA noted that Busan port is regarded as an attractive port of call in Northeast Asia, and that developing it into a homeport will require a level of terminal accessibility and operational capability distinct from what a transit port demands.

"We will build on our experience by expanding turnaround and overnight operations, and gradually upgrade air and rail access along with terminal, baggage and customs, immigration and quarantine systems to turn Busan's strengths into homeport competitiveness," BPA President Song Sang-geun said.