Funchal tops cruise ports
Madeira’s Funchal was named the best cruise port in Europe and is seeing visits from ships like AIDASol, MS Azura, Norwegian Sun and Azamara Pursuit (x.com). That mix of mid‑sized ships makes Funchal a strong pick for spring Atlantic or Canary‑linked itineraries (x.com).
The Port of Funchal recorded a new milestone of roughly 700,000 cruise passengers in 2024, according to industry and regional port reporting. (medcruise.com / seatrade-cruise.com) In 2023 the port logged 279 cruise ship calls and about 624,400 disembarked passengers, a 51% increase on 2022 that APRAM said it expected to surpass the following year. (cruiseandferry.net) APRAM and regional officials reported 23 inaugural ship calls in 2024 and estimated a direct economic impact of €61.4 million for that season, up 20.3% versus 2023. (seatrade-cruise.com) Spring schedules published for Funchal show arriving vessels with listed capacities ranging roughly from 516 passengers up to about 4,610, underlining why mid‑sized ships dominate Atlantic/Canary itineraries. (cruisedig.com) APRAM’s public dashboard lists 1,373 ship calls and 1,539,450 passengers for 2024 across Madeira’s ports, and port leaders have flagged capacity limits with plans under discussion to extend the south pier and install shore power. (apram.pt / seatrade-cruise.com)
