Of 5,901 passengers this year, 1,470 explored Busan past 10 p.m.; port targets 20 overnight calls by 2030

The Busan Port Authority said it successfully completed all eight overnight cruise calls at Busan port this year, with the Azamara Pursuit's arrival Thursday marking the final call of the season. [Busan Port Authority]
The Busan Port Authority said it successfully completed all eight overnight cruise calls at Busan port this year, with the Azamara Pursuit's arrival Thursday marking the final call of the season. [Busan Port Authority]

The Busan Port Authority (BPA) said Monday it had successfully wrapped up all eight overnight cruise calls at Busan port this year, with the Azamara Pursuit's arrival Thursday marking the final call of the 2026 season.

Throughout the year, a string of global luxury cruise lines — including Oceania Cruises, Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection, Ponant, Seabourn, The World and Azamara — made overnight calls at the port. A particular highlight came on Sept. 18, when The World, on a two-night, three-day itinerary, and the Diamond Princess, on a one-night, two-day schedule, were berthed simultaneously at Busan's North Port Cruise Terminal, lighting up the waterfront late into the night.

About 470 passengers from the two ships enjoyed Busan's nighttime tourism offerings, with the last guest returning safely to their vessel at 1:30 a.m.

The World and several other luxury cruise lines had long requested extended stays in Busan — one- or two-night stopovers that would give passengers more time to explore the city. In response, BPA worked closely with customs, immigration and quarantine (CIQ) agencies to extend cruise terminal operating hours and put measures in place to better serve passengers during nighttime hours.

A total of 5,901 passengers sailed on overnight cruise calls to Busan port this year. Of those, 1,470 continued touring the city past 10 p.m.

"This year's operations confirmed that overnight calls can go beyond simply keeping a ship in port longer — they can evolve into a stay-based cruise model that extends tourists' time ashore and connects them with local tourism and spending," a BPA official said.

Building on the operational experience gained this year, BPA plans to expand marketing to global cruise lines with the goal of attracting more than 20 overnight calls to Busan port by 2030. Around 10 overnight calls from luxury lines — including Azamara, Ponant, Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection and Silversea — are already scheduled for 2027.

Silversea, which had no overnight calls at Busan port this year, confirmed three overnight calls for 2027 — two by the Silver Cloud and one by the Silver Muse — following targeted marketing BPA conducted in the United States and Europe in August.

BPA said its strategy is to use overnight cruise calls to extend passengers' time at Busan port, then develop the port's status progressively from a port of call to a turnaround port and ultimately a home port, driving qualitative growth in Busan's cruise industry.

"Busan port's cruise tourism is expanding from a simple transit model — where ships stop briefly and move on — to a stay-based model where vessels remain for one night or more," BPA President Song Sang-geun said. "The close cooperation of CIQ agencies handling immigration, customs and quarantine is a key competitive advantage that builds trust in Busan port among global cruise lines and their customers."


alsgp9737@heraldcorp.com