New York’s Cruise Terminal Needs Room, and Plugs for Its Ships

New York’s Manhattan Cruise Terminal is heading for an overhaul, and planners say the biggest need is simple: space. Allison Dees, who heads the cruise portfolio at the city’s Economic Development Corporation, said so at an event run by New York Maritime and CLIA. The terminal handles about one million passengers a year, roughly half from out of town. Larger ships are expected around 2032, and NYCEDC presented its master plan in late 2025 and is still refining it.

Shore power is the headline environmental feature. Brooklyn Cruise Terminal already has it. NYCEDC plans it at three berths of a redeveloped Manhattan terminal, working with Con Edison, and is also trying to add it at the existing site. That would let docked ships switch off their engines and cut emissions in the city.

LNG is a harder question. Bunkering with liquefied natural gas is not currently permitted in the port, and the city would need to work with the US Coast Guard and FDNY to change that. The issue is timely because of upcoming calls by Disney’s LNG-powered Wish-class ships.

Money is the other obstacle. Craig Fuehrer of Deutsche Bank Securities said infrastructure investors want committed ship bookings before they will finance such a project. No cost figures were given at the event, so the timetable for passengers remains uncertain.

Sources: Cruise Industry News, Seatrade Cruise (background)