Introduction
On one of the long offshore islands fronting the Atlantic coast of Florida, halfway between Jacksonville and Miami, sits Cape Canaveral. Enclosing the city to the east is the Banana River, on the north side is Port Canaveral, on the west side is the Atlantic Ocean and on the south side is Cocoa Beach.
The currents which whirl around the Cape make it perilous to ships, and countless seamen have met their fate in wrecks around the Cape. The promontory was named Cape Canaveral by seamen from Spain during the sixteenth century. The Cape Canaveral Lighthouse was erected in 1844 with the aim of making the coast safer for shipping.
In the 1910s a small community centered on fishing was founded just south of Cape Canaveral. The town was called Artesia. To the south of Artesia the community of Avon-by-the-Sea, with streets named after presidents, was started by a club of property speculators. WWII brought about the establishment of Banana River Naval Air Station at the Cape which had the role of supporting coastal seaplanes.
After World War 2 the US air-force, searching for a neck of land extending into the Atlantic ocean to make an ideal launch base, selected the Cape. Avon-by-the-Sea and Artesia were engulfed by the new facilities constructed to cater for the space employees of the base, and the city of Cape Canaveral was founded.
The Cape Canaveral base needed a facility for retrieving booster rockets from the ocean, and Port Canaveral was constructed and dedicated in 1953. The theme parks of central Florida are a huge attraction, and in the 1970s the port was first utilized by cruise ships as it was a port-of-call close to Orlando. During the next decade, Premier Cruises and Carnival Cruises based ships at Port Canaveral, offering cruises to Freeport from newly constructed cruise ship terminals. The 1990s were a period of fast expansion for the cruise port, with the construction of cruise terminals 5, 8, and 10. Disney cruises started operating from the port.
Today more than a million passengers depart on their cruise vacation from Port Canaveral every year. Royal Caribbean and NCL have been added to the list of cruise lines operating cruises from the port.
You Choose The Cruise
Cruises on offer include the Eastern Caribbean (St Maarten, San Juan and St Thomas), the Western Caribbean (Grand Cayman, Cozumel, Belize and Roatan), or the Bahamas (Freeport and Nassau). Longer trips are also to be had, such as transatlantic cruises to Europe. For a list of cruises from Cape Canaveral, see cruises from Port Canaveral.
Port Canaveral Cruise Terminals
Port Canaveral has several cruise terminals, though just 3 are used day-in/day-out for multi-day cruise ships. These are terminals 5, 8 and 10 which are on the north west shore of the port. Terminal 2 hosts a casino cruise ship. Terminals 3 and 4 are not utilized often.
A Side (North) Terminals
Cruise terminal buildings 5, 8 and 10 are sited on the A or north side, alongside Charles M Rowland Drive.
These more modern terminals are each capable of handling 3000 plus people, and have large docks to berth the newer super sized ships.
Cruise Terminal 5 is an attractive 2 story building, with a 30ft high central hall filled with tropical vegetation and gushing waterfalls. Embarking cruisers are handled on the top storey, disembarking passengers on the bottom. Cruise Terminal 8 was constructed for Disney Cruise Line, and is an eye-catching art-nouveau style terminal with an impressive 90ft circular glass foyer. Cruise Terminal 10 has a 3 layered passenger loading/unloading arrangement, and completely automated baggage processing. The cruise terminals respective dock lengths are: terminal 5 970ft, terminal 8 1000ft, terminal 10 1100ft.
Each terminal provides the necessary facilities including pay phones, ATMs, check-in desks, restrooms, vending machines and cab rank. A dedicated parking lot for the use of passengers is situated next to each terminal building.
B Side (South) Terminals
Cruise terminals 2, 3 and 4 are located on the south west or B side, along George King Boulevard. These terminal buildings were amongst Port Canaveral's first facilities dedicated to the cruise lines, and each can handle about 1800 passengers. The 3 terminals share 2,150 ft of continuous dock offering the capacity to accommodate two large or three medium-length cruise ships.
A large parking area for passengers’ use stands adjacent to each cruise terminal building.
For the port website see Port Canaveral Port Authority.
Sightseeing Around Port Canaveral
Jetty Park
Jetty Park is a attractive coastline park which encompasses a beach, picnic areas, pavilions, camping and a playground. A favorite with both walkers and fishermen is Jetty Park pier, which offers great views of marine traffic departing from/arriving at Port Canaveral, and super fishing for tarpon, common jacks and redfish. The long sandy Atlantic-facing beach offers many facilities like year-round lifeguards, convenient parking, showers and restrooms. The lively Cove Waterfront area positioned between the park and the port has shops, cafes and restaurants. The park is managed by the Port Authority, and is located on the south side of the port’s exit channel.
Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex
The excitement of space travel is infectious to almost everybody. The Kennedy Space Center is the core of NASA’s activities and was the launch pad for the Apollo missions. At the Center you can go by bus to the LC39 Gantry and the Apollo Center, watch a movie at the IMAX center, learn about the future of space exploration at the Exploration Space exhibition and undergo the Shuttle Launch Experience. The Center is only 10 miles northwards of the port.
US Astronaut Hall of Fame
The Astronaut Hall of Fame celebrates American astronauts. See an absorbing collection including space suits, a realistic astronaut training simulator, the Sigma 7 Mercury rocket and the Science On A Sphere exhibition. The Hall of Fame is about 5 miles west from the Space Center.
Cocoa Beach Pier
Originally built in 1962 Cocoa Beach Pier is among the most popular landmarks on the Space coast. The 800 foot pier houses souvenir shops, four bars, frequent live street entertainment and 5 restaurants. The beach next to the pier has restrooms, beach-hire stalls, freshwater showers and year-round life guards. Cocoa Beach is only 5 miles south of the port.
Orlando Amusement Parks
Head west from the Port on Martin Andersen Beachline Expressway to reach fabulous attractions like Disney/MGM Studios, Universal Studios, Sea World of Florida and Walt Disney World all of which are no more than an hour’s drive away.
Getting To The Cruise Port
By Car
North Cruise Terminals
Drive towards Port Canaveral on Hwy 528, cross Merritt Island, and exit at the sign marked A Cruise Terminals onto SR 401 North. Drive 1 mile on SR 401 North next exit at the sign marked with the cruiselines.
South Cruise Terminals
Enter into Port Canaveral on Highway 528 and leave at the sign marked B Cruise Terminals. Next make a left under bridge to George King Boulevard. Carry on for a mile. Next follow directions to get to the required cruise terminal.
By Air
Orlando International Airport
Orlando International Airport, positioned in the southern outskirts of Orlando, is around 45 minutes drive west from Port Canaveral. Travel from the airport can be arranged by taxicab or shuttle.
Melbourne International Airport
Melbourne International Airport is roughly 30 miles south of Port Canaveral. Travel from the airport is possible by shuttle bus or cab.
