Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez has extended the waiver for lay berth and harbor fees for cruise line partners of Miami-Dade County through November 16, subject to availability at PortMiami Florida.
Mayor Gimenez said:
“Miami-Dade County will continue to support its cruise line partners. It is because of our partners that PortMiami is recognized as the Cruise Capital of the World. We’re grateful and committed to their future.”
- On April 9, the U.S. CDC (United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) announced a No Sail Order for cruise ships. On April 13, Mayor Gimenez extended the waiver through May 12 and broadened the definition of the waiver to apply to any ship owned by a cruise company that has berthing or operating agreement with Miami-Dade County.
- On June 19, CLIA (Cruise Line Industry Association) announced its voluntary extension of the suspension of U.S. cruise passenger operations through September 15.
- On August 5, CLIA announced it was further extending the voluntary suspension of cruise passenger operations to October 31.
The time period for the extended waiver can be amended at any time at the sole discretion of Miami-Dade County, as needed.
In 2019, the port saw 6,8 million cruise passengers pass through, providing a total of 27,500 jobs and contributing USD 7,8 billion to the South Florida economy.