Thursday, October 16, 2025, brought more cruisers to PortMiami with the arrival of two new cruise ships to the region. Virgin Voyages’ newest ship, Brilliant Lady, and Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth will homeport in “the cruise capital of the world” for several months.
Brilliant Lady is Virgin Voyages’ fourth cruise ship and began her inaugural sailings last month when she sailed out of New York. She arrived in PortMiami on Thursday to a star-studded celebration before she began her official MerMaiden voyage in the Caribbean on Friday, October 17, 2025.
Brilliant Lady will sail the Caribbean through April 2026 before she transits the Panama Canal on her way to Los Angeles to offer West Coast itineraries to Mexico and California. In May 2026, she will then make her way to Seattle to sail Virgin’s first cruises to Alaska.
Also on Thursday, for the first time in its history, Cunard brought one of its queens into PortMiami. The recently refreshed Queen Elizabeth will homeport in Miami for the first time sailing various Caribbean voyages.
PortMiami Director and CEO Hydi Webb welcomed the ship and said, “We are grateful for this new partnership and continued growth at the Cruise Capital of the World.” The occasion was celebrated with the presentation of a ceremonial plaque to Cunard’s captain and officers.
Queen Elizabeth’s inaugural season will include 9- to 21-night voyages to the Eastern and Western Caribbean. She will sail from PortMiami through April 2026 when she will make her way back to Seattle for her Alaska season.
PortMiami’s 2025-26 cruise season is promising to be one of the best yet. Not only are Brilliant Lady and Queen Elizabeth making their debuts, but the season will also see Holland America’s Zuiderdam, Celebrity Cruises’ Celebrity Xcel and Oceania Cruises’ Allura make debuts. Cruisers will also see the arrival of MSC Cruises’ Grandiosa in December, Holland America’s Eurodam in February and Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Luna in March.
Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava stated, “The arrival of these new ships reinforces Miami’s role as the global hub for cruising, and reflects our strong commitment to growing tourism, supporting jobs and strengthening our local economy.”
PortMiami broke several records during the 2024-25 season and with the lineup of ships headed to the “world’s busiest cruise port” during the 2025-26 season, more records are sure to be broken.