The excitement of the cruise ship business certainly has a positive impact on many things, including reviving the economy on a large scale as well as the local economy, especially the economy around the port area.
Moreover, the economic value generated by the operation of cruise ships is no joke. At the Port of Galveston, Texas, which is the fourth most popular cruise ship base in North America, for example, the cruise service is even worth US$1.6 billion a year.
That’s not counting the impact of up to 27,000 jobs involved statewide. “Shipping is very important for Galveston’s economy,” said Craig Brown, Mayor of Galveston, Monday (3/5).
It is undeniable that the biggest contributor to the value of the cruise ship service business at the Port of Galveston is Carnival Cruise Line, a cruise ship operator owned by Carnival Corporation & Plc.
Why not, every year Carnival Cruise Line operates Carnival Vista, Carnival Breeze, and Carnival Dream as many as 175 voyages, carrying around 750,000 passengers from the port.
Therefore, Carnival Cruise Line President Christine Duffy hopes that the cruise industry is treated the same as other travel and hospitality companies in their operations during the COVID-19 pandemic.