Galveston to Dock 7 Cruise Ships at Once, According to New Master Plan

The Port of Galveston in Texas is already the busiest cruise port in the U.S. outside of Florida.   And the port is showing no signs of slowing down after a “master plan” revealed the goal of being able to dock 7 ships at once by 2045.

Galveston saw about 3 million passenger movements in 2023, 3.4 million in 2024, and 3.6 million in 2025. 

The port is already looking at almost 4 million passengers going through its terminals in 2026 and it hopes to get that number to almost 6 million by 2030.

After just visiting the port a few months ago myself, I saw just how far Galveston has come.  The port is now home to MSC Seascape which recently made its big debut at the brand-new Cruise Terminal 16.

Seeing the ship at the state-of-the-art Pier 16 terminal, which even has its own parking garage, made it pretty clear that Galveston isn’t messing around. 

Although the port is geographically a bit further from popular ports of call in The Bahamas and Caribbean, more ships are coming, offering more variety to local residents who want to cruise.

Getting to 7 Berths

The port already hit a major milestone in building its fourth cruise terminal.  Now, Galveston is looking to expand even more.

According to the newly updated 20-Year Strategic Master Plan, the port is looking to build a future where seven cruise ships can call the island home at the same time.

Here is the breakdown of how they plan to get there:

• The Fifth Terminal (Pier 14): This is the next big project on the list, with a target opening around 2030.   This would put the cruise port with a max capacity of 5 ships.
• The “Flex” Terminal: Terminal 25 will be a “flex terminal”. This area would pull double duty, docking cruise ships during peak weekend rushes and switching to cargo during the week.
• Expanding to 7 berths: Terminal 7 will be further west along the channel and have a wide target date between 2040 and 2045.  The port is reserving that space now so they have room to expand in the future.

The Waterfront

If you’ve driven down Harborside Drive recently, you know traffic can be a bit tight on embarkation day.

But the port’s master plan is ready to transform the entire port area. We’re talking 600,000 square feet of new retail space, multiple new hotels, and even a park area surrounding Battleship Texas, which is set to move right next to Terminal 16.

Growth of Galveston

With MSC Seascape now sailing year-round out of Galveston, and Norwegian Viva now also sailing out of Terminal 16, the port is proving it can be a top-tier cruise port.

By the mid-2040s, the port expects to handle between 7 and 8 million passenger movements a year.

To put that in perspective, that would put Galveston in direct competition with the “Big Three” Florida ports for the title of the busiest cruise homeport in the world.

About ten or more ships are now sailing out of Galveston across six major cruise lines.

Carnival Cruise Line has four ships (Jubilee, Breeze, Dream, and Legend), while Royal Caribbean is currently homeporting three (Allure, Harmony, and Mariner of the Seas).

MSC Cruises, Norwegian Cruise Line, Disney Cruise Line, and Princess Cruises each have one ship currently sailing from the island.

Open House

If you are in the Galveston area, the port is inviting the public to come see a brief presentation on the plan.

The Port of Galveston is hosting an Open House this Wednesday, March 25, from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM. The event will be held at the new Cruise Terminal 16 (1602 Harborside Drive).

The presentation will be made at 4:30 PM.