Super Size my Port Please
Don’t look now but Fort Lauderdale’s cruise port is more than tripling the size of one of its cruise terminals in time for the arrival of Royal Caribbean International’s 5,400-passenger Oasis-class of ships, the largest cruise ships in the world. When completed, Terminal 18 will become the largest single-ship cruise terminal in the world. Guests will be treated to the Oasis experience as soon as they enter the terminal according to port officials. The grand opening is planned to coincide with the arrival of the ship in November 2009. Oasis of the Seas will use the terminal initially and will be joined by its sister ship, Allure of the Seas, a year later.
The terminal will be more than three times larger than existing terminals, with a total of 240,000 square feet on two floors. The terminal will be large enough to accommodate both arriving and departing cruise passengers and their luggage simultaneously. In the new Terminal 18, guests will debark and embark through entirely different sections of the building, permitting the simultaneous debarking of guests from the ship while embarking guests are processed and seated inside the terminal waiting to board the ship. The terminal area for debarking guests is 102,000 square feet on two levels, while the arrival hall for embarking guests is in the new section and encompasses 138,000 square feet on two levels. The goal is that once the ship is cleared for embarkation, the transition for guests to go from curbside to the ship can be completed in 15 minutes.
There will be 22 booths for U.S. Customs and Border Protection personnel to process guests after their cruise. The embarkation area will feature 90 check-in counters and a bank of overhead video screens that provide arriving guests with directions and information. Terminal 18 is located in the center of Port Everglades directly on the port’s main thoroughfare. It is separated from other cruise terminals so that vehicular traffic to and from the terminal is isolated and can move smoothly.
Stay tuned…the Cruise Chick will be sailing on the Oasis November 20, 2009
