We will have to wait until next year for large and luxurious cruise ships entering the Port of Gdańsk. After all, on September 23, this year's cruise season came to an end with the arrival of the Clio cruiser at the WOC II wharf. It was certainly a record year in terms of the number of calls.

The 2022 season for visits by foreign guests sailing around Europe and the world on luxury ships should be considered very successful. Cruise ships called at the Port of Gdańsk from April to September a total of 79 times.

During the pandemic period, the cruise market slumped. But this year brought a clear rebound. Due to the war in Ukraine, there was more cruise ship traffic in the Baltic ports.

„This was due to the decisions of shipowners - there were no passenger vessels calling at Russia's largest passenger port in St. Petersburg. Instead, they willingly visited Polish ports, among others. The Port of Gdańsk served 79 vessels with 29.5 thousand passengers on board. So far, the record year in terms of calls was 2018. At that time, 67 vessels with just over 30 thousand passengers on board entered the Port of Gdańsk,” reports Anna Drozd, spokesperson for the Port of Gdańsk Authority.

„This season was definitely the best in the port's history. Both in terms of the number of vessels calling at the port, and in terms of revenue from port fees, which was nearly 2.5 times higher than the previous record in 2018. We want to promote the Port of Gdańsk as an ideal destination among foreign shipowners, as well as talk about the huge tourism potential of our region, which is why we are present at the world's largest cruise fair," explains Michał Stupak, client manager at the Port of Gdańsk Authority.

This year, the largest number of calls was in July - as many as 23 (8.7 thousand passengers). The largest ship was Marina with a length of 239 meters, at the same time also on this vessel served 1026 passengers, the most of all cruise ships that docked in the Port of Gdańsk. In turn, vessels from the Viking series, owned by the shipowner Viking Ocean Cruises, have visited us as many as 22 times.

The next year, 2023, already promises to be a very good one, as there is already space reserved for 80 vessels in the navigation portfolio.