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Port of Galveston Making Major Upgrades

Carnival Cruise Line’s Jubilee is headed to Texas later this year and Cruise Terminal 25 at Galveston Wharves is getting ready to the tune of a $53 million expansion and upgrade. 

Carnival Jubilee will homeport in Galveston and sail 7-day Western Caribbean cruises year round. She is the sister ship to Mardi Gras and Carnival Celebration making her the third LNG-powered Excel-class ship in Carnival’s fleet. 

Rodger Rees, Galveston Wharves port director and CEO, said, “We’re looking forward to welcoming the beautiful new Carnival Jubilee to our improved cruise terminal. We’re proud to have Carnival Cruise Line, our long-time cruise partner, choose Galveston as the home port for its newest ship.”

Cruise Terminal 25 will receive upgrades to the gangway, ramp, two elevators, an escalator, and a new roof. The modifications will help to improve embarkation and debarkation for passengers. The terminal is expected to operate as usual during construction. 

Additionally, in order to better protect passengers and crew, there will be mandated improvements to the facilities used by the U.S. Customs and Border Protections 

Not only will the upgrades improve the look of the port of Galveston, but they also are an investment in the port’s future growth, more jobs and a stronger economy. 

The upgrades are being funded with cash reserves, a proposed bond issue and an agreement with Carnival.

Rees stated,  “Carnival was the first major cruise line to homeport in Galveston more than 20 years ago. They believed in us then and believe in Galveston’s growing prominence as a top cruise port today.”

As the fourth most popular port in the United States, the port of Galveston generates two-thirds of its revenues from the cruise business and is on track to set records in 2023.