Cruise Ships Arriving in Rio Bring US$18 Million for Carnival 2017

By Lise Alves, Senior Contributing Reporter

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Officials in Rio de Janeiro expect to receive fourteen ocean liner cruise ships during the 2017 Carnival period, where approximately 50,000 people will disembark in Rio’s Pier Mauá, according to Port Authorities.

The pier official estimates that about US$18 million will be injected into the city’s economy by these sea-arriving tourists alone.

Most vessels are expected to arrive next Sunday, February 26th, when Rio hosts the first day of samba school parades. On that single day, city officials estimates that more than 35,000 tourists between passengers and crew will disembark in the city’s port.

According to the maritime terminal operations manager, Alexandre Gomes, the organization estimates that about US$18 million will be injected into the city’s economy by these sea-arriving tourists alone. Gomes said, “The entire ‘Carnival operation’ is very big and can be compared to hosting mega event.”

He added, “There are meetings with Riotur, Cet-Rio, Porto Novo Concessionaire, Federal Revenue Service, Companhia Docas and Federal Police, all to ensure that the operation works in the best possible way. Not only inside the port, but also outside on the Olympic Boulevard area and in relation to vehicle access.

To make sure everything runs smoothly, the number of employees at the pier has quadrupled. There have been extra employees working in the terminal operation, transit, baggage transport and security.

According to data from the Brazilian Association of Operators of International Tourism (BITO) from January through April of 2017, 93 vessels are scheduled to dock at Pier Mauá carrying about 350,000 people.

These tourists are expected to inject US$105 million into the city’s economy. The calculations are based on the average daily spending of US$300 per tourist, according to data from the Brazilian Association of Operators of International Incoming Tourism.