Mega Cruise Ships In Seattle? New Dock Could Be Big Enough

SEATTLE, WA - The Port of Seattle is planning to turn a cargo terminal near Pioneer Square into the region's newest cruise ship dock. And documents associated with the proposal show that the world's biggest cruise ships might someday be able to dock there.

The Port plans to use about 29 acres on the north end of Terminal 46 for the dock. The development could cost up to $200 million and could be complete by 2022.

A recent request-for-qualifications form issued by the Port says that the terminal should be able to handle ships that weigh up to 250,000 gross register tons (GRT). By comparison, Royal Caribbean's Symphony of the Seas, the world's largest cruise ship, is about 228,000 GRT.

"We want the capacity for up to that size vessel, which would allow for future growth of the cruise business here at the Port of Seattle," Port spokesman Peter McGraw said. "It does not mean those size vessels will be arriving there for the 2022 cruise season, when we hope to have that facility open."

Seattle's cruise-ship audience has grown enormously over the past 20 years. In 1999, the city had just over 6,000 boardings. In 2019, the Port predicts there will be 1.2 million.

The Port operates two other cruise terminals in the downtown area: the Smith Cove Cruise Terminal at Pier 91 and the Bell Street Pier Cruise Terminal at Pier 66.

McGraw noted that the Royal Caribbean Ovation of the Seas ship will dock at Smith Cove on May 24, and will be the largest cruise ship along the West Coast at that time.