Why Southampton’s Cruise Traffic Just Matched an Unbelievable Record

The cruise industry continued to deliver big financial rewards to the Port of Southampton, to the tune of £1 billion ($1.3 billion USD) in 2025, a year-end report from its management firm, Associated British Ports, confirms.

The year reflected the most cruise ship calls at the port — nearly 450, and matched 2024’s record of 3 million passenger arrivals.

The Port of Southampton operates five cruise terminals, with the Horizon Cruise Terminal being the newest. Together, the terminals provide six cruise ship berths.

In 2025, the port experienced the most days when all five terminals were simultaneously in use.

Carnival UK ships play an important role at Southampton. Luxury line Cunard falls under that corporate umbrella, and its ships bring scores of passengers to the port.

The line’s Queen Mary 2, for instance, is the only ocean liner sailing weekly transatlantic itineraries between Southampton and New York from April to November. 

Cunard’s other ships, Queen Anne and Queen Victoria, are homeporting in Southampton for at least part of winter 2025-26, offering Caribbean voyages, Canary Island cruises, and short getaways to Germany and the Netherlands.

In January 2026, Queen Anne will set out from Southampton on her 110-night World Voyage.  

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Carnival UK’s 2025 Economic Report estimates that each of its ships’ departures brings up to £2.5 million ($3.37 million USD) to the Southampton region.

MSC Cruises’ MSC Poesia and P&O Cruises’ Iona are also based at Southampton for this winter season, sailing 7-night Northern Europe itineraries, among other ships.

Norwegian Aqua’s Launch a 2025 Highlight For Port

One of the port’s 2025 highlights was the hosting of Norwegian Cruise Line’s new ship, Norwegian Aqua, which departed on her inaugural voyage from Southampton on March 28, 2025. Fresh out of a Fincantieri shipyard in Italy, the 3,571-guest ship sailed to New York following a gala send-off.

“I’m delighted to see Southampton’s cruise sector continuing to thrive. We take great pride in ensuring vessels arrive on time and in allocating berths well in advance—often up to two years ahead,” said Alastair Welch, regional director at Associated British Ports.

“Much of this success comes from meticulous planning months before each call by our Marine and Cruise Operations Teams to deliver a seamless experience for our customers,” Welch added.

Terminal operator Solent Stevedores reports that it handled 3.3 million pieces of luggage for cruise passengers who arrived or departed on 449 ships during 2025.

“It’s been another great year for cruise in Southampton and we’re proud to be a key part of these industry-leading operations in the region,” said Clive Thomas, commercial director at Solent Stevedores.

Southampton Had Its Challenges in 2025

Overall, according to Associated British Ports, Southampton is the UK’s busiest port and supports more than 45,000 jobs. In addition to its substantial cruise-tourism revenue, the port is a major cargo facility, handling about 14 million tons of goods annually.

But while the Port of Southampton can celebrate another successful year of operation, 2025 wasn’t all peaches and cream.

In August 2025, a bomb threat to the port’s Mayflower Cruise Ferry Terminal caused an evacuation of the terminal and one docked cruise ship; the threat turned out to be a hoax. 

Then, in September 2025, a massive car theft operation saw 17 vehicles go missing from a parking lot near the port. Several of the cars were eventually found. The lot was not operated directly by the port, but by a private company.