The cruise market explodes in Montreal

Beyond its urban tourism offering, Montréal is also very well positioned for cruises and is experiencing strong international growth in this market.

Montreal is a port of embarkation and disembarkation particularly used for itineraries such as Montreal-Boston or Montreal-New York. Moreover, with its advantageous geographical position, the city is also an excellent starting point for routes to the Great Lakes.

Increase in international passengers from 2011 to 2018 

As a port of embarkation and disembarkation, Montreal attracts due to the proximity of its Montreal-Trudeau International Airport to downtown and the cruise terminal. The number of international passengers increased by 200 % between 2011 and 2018. A vast offer of direct flights to Montreal is also a determining point.

2018 season: from May 5 to November 2, the flagship news

Several ships will make their first visit to Montreal:
Victory Cruise Lines’ Victory II will begin its maiden voyage on July 27, 2018 in Montreal and will follow a route on the five Great Lakes. This vessel can accommodate up to 202 passengers and 84 crew members.

On September 20, Montreal will welcome for the first time Windstar Cruise’s Star Pride (208 passengers).

Silversea’s Silver Wind and Silver Spirit ships will also visit Montreal for the first time in 2018. They have a capacity of 302 passengers and 540 passengers.

On September 13, 2019, it will be Ponant’s Champlain’s turn to come regularly to the waters of the St. Lawrence and visit Montreal as part of its expedition cruises.

AIDA Cruises’ AIDAVita (1,266 passengers and 389 crew members) will visit Montreal for the first time on July 5. This will be the first in a series of three summer visits to Montreal (July and August).

The addition of the AIDAVita in summer is part of a desire to extend the tourist cruise season.

A new trend with more routes starting and ending in Montreal. These itineraries allow you to visit a few Quebec stopovers on the St. Lawrence in addition to a stopover in St-Pierre and Miquelon in French territory.

Among the cruise lines offering this type of trip are Crystal Cruises with the Crystal Symphony, Seabourn with the Seabourn Quest, as well as the German ships AIDADiva and Hamburg from Plantours Reisen.

A new cruise terminal

This new cruise terminal was inaugurated a stone’s throw from the Old Port in 2017. It offers an incomparable view of the city of Montreal. Passengers can take advantage of several services on site, including tourist information, a luggage check-in service, free wifi and an on-site taxi service.

An exhibition centre located in the cruise terminal and the current exhibition, Ship Histories, is accessible free of charge. The terminal’s large terrace and green roof are also accessible to both passengers and the Montreal community.

The new terminal now allows ships to use shore power service. It is the only port offering this service in Quebec.