In continuing his efforts to bring New York City’s tourism sector back to pre-COVID-19 levels, Mayor Eric Adams on Wednesday announced the company MSC Cruises will begin running year-round ships out of the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal starting next April, which he says is expected to generate $102 million in annual revenue for the city.
During a press conference at the Manhattan Cruise Terminal, where the company’s newest ship – the MSC Seascape – is docked, the mayor said that revenue would come from roughly 219,000 tourists traveling to the city on MSC cruises each year. Adams said the year-round vessels from MSC – the world’s third largest cruise company, based in Switzerland, according to a release – would create up-to 10,000 full-time jobs in the city, including 150 jobs in the terminal itself.
“Anytime we have international travelers that come here, we just give them one assignment: spend money, spend money, spend money,” Adams said. “So, they’re going to spend a lot of money here. This is a real boost to our economy. A real boost to tourism. And a boost to contributing to our local community.”
The company will operate its MSC Meraviglia ship out of the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal, running trips to destinations including Florida, The Bahamas, the Caribbean, Bermuda, Canada and New England. City Economic Development Corporation (EDC) President and CEO Adnrew Kimball estimated the addition of MSC’s year-round cruises will increase the number of sea-faring tourists sailing to the city each year by 20%.
“The cruise industry is a crucial part of New York City’s economy, supporting thousands of jobs across the city in the maritime, tourism, and entertainment sectors,” Kimball said, in a statement. “As the tourism industry sector continues to thrive and climb back towards pre-pandemic levels, we are thrilled to have MSC Cruises dock in New York City and look forward to seeing them sail from our Brooklyn Cruise Terminal next year.”
Additionally, the mayor said, MSC is also making a $236,000 donation to the city Parks Department’s Greenthumb community gardening program and the NYC Junior Ambassadors, an initiative that aims to connect public school 7th graders in underserved areas with the United Nations to learn about global issues. The donation to the Parks Department will go towards seven Greenthumb gardens in Red Hook, Brooklyn, Adams said, and the money going to the Junior Ambassador Program will support 600 students.
