Seattle's 2004 Cruise Season:

More Ships, More Passengers, More Economic Benefits

A new ship and a new cruise line will join the Port of Seattle's growing passenger cruise business for the 2004 season, which began Saturday, May 8.

A gala event for Seattle's first cruise ship christening is scheduled for June 10 at Terminal 30 for Princess Cruise Line's brand new Sapphire Princess. The ship will come to Seattle directly from Mitsubishi Shipyard in Japan, where it was built.

Celebrity Cruises, a new entrant in Seattle, will call at Pier 66 on Fridays with the 1,870-passenger Mercury on seven-day Alaska cruises.

The 2004 cruise seasons began with Holland America Line's Oosterdam and Princess Cruise Line's Diamond Princess. Both ships departed from Terminal 30 on seven-day voyages to Alaska on May 8.

They are the first of 149 homeport cruises leaving from Seattle between now and September 30 - a 50 percent increase over last year's 99 homeport cruises. Seattle's passenger volume will increase from 345,000 in 2003 to more than half a million this year.

"The phenomenal success of the cruise industry in Seattle is a testament to the hard work and determination of not only the Port, but a wide range of individuals and organizations over a period of nearly 20 years," said Port of Seattle Commission President Paige Miller. "It's the fulfillment of a dream."

All three of the Port's cruise ship berths (one at Pier 66, two at Terminal 30) will be in use on both Saturdays and Sundays this year. Pier 66 will host Celebrity Cruise's Mercury on Fridays.

Norwegian Cruise Line - the first to make a commitment to Seattle as a homeport - returns in 2004 with the 2,200-passenger Norwegian Star and the 2,000-passenger Norwegian Spirit. The vessels will call at Pier 66 on Saturdays and Sundays making seven-day voyages to Alaska.

Princess Cruise Lines returns to Terminal 30 with the 2,600-passenger Diamond Princess and Sapphire Princess. Also calling at Terminal 30 is Holland America Line with the 1,824-passenger Oosterdam and the 1,380-passenger Amsterdam. All four ships will make seven-day round-trips to Alaska.

Also returning in 2004 is the Empress of the North, operated by American West Steamboat. The 236-passenger replica of an old-time sternwheeler will offer ten and 11-day cruises to Alaska, departing from Pier 66 and Terminal 30.

According to a recently released economic impact study commissioned by the Port, the 2004 cruise season will generate $208 million in local business revenue, $59 million in payroll and $5.9 million in state and local tax revenues.

"The economic benefits offered by the cruise industry are why we worked so hard to bring this business to Seattle and why we are trying to increase its presence here," said Charlie Sheldon, Managing Director of the Port's Seaport Division. "The cruise ships bring jobs and business revenue to the traditional maritime sector," Sheldon said, "but the cruise business also reaches deeper into the local economy to provide opportunities for people and businesses in the hotel, restaurant, retail, tourism and transportation industries."