Shanghai Reports Record 840,000 Passengers in First Half of 2024
The port of Shanghai in China reported that it welcomed 840,000 cruise passengers in the first half of 2024, according to the Shanghai Port Border Inspection Department.
Data shared by the Shanghai International Cruise Economic Research Center also revealed that more than 90 international vessels were inspected at the port during this time. This equates to over 180 cruise ships coming in and out of the country.
Shanghai set a record on June 28, 2024, with about 25,000 passengers passing through the port in a single day. Additionally, approximately 45,000 foreign passengers transited through Shanghai in the first half of the year. Of this total, 18,000 took advantage of China’s new visa-free policy for cruise travel.
These achievements are attributed to the return of international cruise operations to Shanghai and the introduction of newer, larger vessels in the Chinese market. The Adora Magic City, the first large cruise ship built in China, debuted in January and is now operating year-round from Shanghai under Adora Cruises.
The Blue Dream Melody, acquired from AIDA Cruises, started operations for Blue Dream Cruises in June. Meanwhile, international brands like MSC Cruises and Royal Caribbean International have also returned to Shanghai in 2024, bringing larger ships to the market.
China Merchants and Viking are operating the former Viking Sun from Shanghai as well. Homeporting operations alone saw over 600,000 inbound and outbound passengers in the first half of the year, as noted by the Shanghai International Cruise Economic Research Center.
