The Disney Cruise Line terminal at Port Canaveral is getting a $40 million upgrade

With three new ships on the way, Disney Cruise Line will nearly double the size of its fleet within the next five years. Disney has been expanding their cruise itineraries in recent years, but Port Canaveral is still the bread and butter for the cruise line.

Three Disney ships, including one of the slightly larger new ships, are slated to call Port Canaveral home, with current itinerary plans calling for two ships to be in port at the same time.

To prepare for the larger ships, which will house the same number of staterooms but will be 10,000 tons heavier, and to accommodate the much busier schedule, Port Canaveral is moving forward with $46 million in upgrades.

All but $6.8 million of the $46.5 million earmarked for the updates will be spent on expanding and improving Terminal 8, which is used exclusively by Disney Cruise Lines.

Terminal 8 will see an expanded seating area with high-end furniture to match the Disney Cruise Line. Similar to many modern airports, USB ports and electrical plugs will be built into the furniture. Thanks to more guests using mobile check-in, part of the check-in area will be updated to accommodate the larger seating area. A 4,600-square-foot arrivals hall will be added to the terminal, and the jetway will be updated to accommodate the new ships.

In documents posted online by Port Canaveral, the new ship class is referred to as the Triton class, though it’s unclear if this is the official term for the new line or just a project name.

A new internal ADA-compliant disembarkation ramp, a 6,900-square-foot stand-alone baggage screening center, and a larger guest drop-off/pick-up area are also planned for the terminal. In a recent Port Canaveral Authority Board of Commissioners meeting, new renderings for the proposed project were shown. The current Art Deco design of the terminal will remain, with the additions tucked away to the sides where most guests won’t even see them.

Nearby at Terminal 10, which is used by Norwegian and soon also by Disney, smaller improvements will also be made. A new pedestrian bridge will allow for easier access to the terminal from the parking structure. Terminal 10 will also be getting updated infrastructure to allow for larger ships to use the terminal.

Like Terminal 8, Terminal 10 will see an expanded seating area thanks to fewer in-person check-ins. Both terminals will also get expanded and improved concierge areas.

With most of the improvements being small ones or ones guests can’t see, the upgrades ahead of Disney’s new ship are nothing compared to the huge new Terminal 3 that Port Canaveral is wrapping up ahead of Carnival’s massive new Mardi Gras ship. Both the new Carnival ship and the new Disney ship will use liquefied natural gas.

All of the updates to Terminals 8 and 10 should be completed by the summer of 2021, just in time for the new Disney ship to arrive. The three ships will set sail in 2021, 2022 and 2023.


Stay on top of Orlando news and views. Sign up for our weekly Headlines newsletter.