PortMiami has announced a set of traffic measures for its 2026-2027 cruise season, according to a Miami-Dade County press release of 16 October 2026. The high season will have 81 days with seven to ten cruise ships in port, which adds pressure on the access roads in downtown Miami and on Biscayne Boulevard.
Tunnel or bridge, depending on the terminal
Together with the PortMiami Tunnel, the cruise lines, taxis, ride-hailing companies and coach operators, the port will remind passengers to arrive only at their scheduled embarkation time, and will share the most direct route to each terminal:
- Terminals AA, A, B, C and D: enter through the PortMiami Tunnel.
- Terminals E, F, G, J and V: enter through the PortMiami Bridge.
- Taxis going to the waiting area opposite Terminal C use the tunnel and park in Lot 1; those going to the area opposite Terminal E use the bridge and park in Lot 2.
- Ride-hailing cars and coaches going to their waiting areas use the tunnel.
In practice, and according to the terminals listed in our PortMiami guide, passengers of MSC Cruises (AA), Royal Caribbean (A) and Norwegian Cruise Line (B) will use the tunnel, while those of Carnival in Terminals E and F, Virgin Voyages (V) and the smaller ships of Terminal J will use the bridge. Carnival’s Terminal D is reached through the tunnel. The cruise line always confirms the terminal.
The port has also produced two videos, “Arrive at Your Embarkation Time” and “Choosing the Right Entrance”, which it will share on its social media and on those of its partners.
Free shuttles to the airport
From October 2026, PortMiami and Carnival Cruise Line are running a pilot programme with free transfers to Miami International Airport for passengers of Carnival Celebration, on selected dates. Royal Caribbean Group’s free airport shuttle for passengers of Icon of the Seas, also on selected dates, will continue.
Cameras, police and cargo roads
The other measures in the plan are:
- Traffic cameras with artificial intelligence: the port continues its pilot project with GridMatrix, winner of the Miami-Dade Innovation Authority’s Public Innovation Challenge, which measures congestion with computer vision to anticipate bottlenecks.
- Police officers on the streets on selected dates: PortMiami’s own staff, the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office and the City of Miami Police will direct traffic on Biscayne Boulevard and in the surrounding areas of downtown.
- Cargo roads as an alternative: the port will keep using its cargo roads to take traffic away from downtown Miami and the highways around it, including I-395.
- Coordination with the Florida Department of Transportation, the City of Miami and the Kaseya Center, the arena next to Bayside, among others.
“These improvements help us reduce congestion, enhance safety and strengthen the overall journey from curb to cruise,” said Jonathan Daniels, Director and CEO of PortMiami, who has been in the post for eight weeks.
New ships in Miami in 2026-2027
The release also lists the ships that will call at PortMiami for the first time this season:
- October 2026: Explora III (Explora Journeys) and Scenic Eclipse.
- November 2026: Silver Shadow (Silversea), Ilma (The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection) and Emerald Sakara (Emerald Cruises).
- December 2026: Silver Ray and Silver Dawn (Silversea), Azamara Quest and Four Seasons I (Four Seasons Yachts).
- January 2027: Beachcomber (Margaritaville at Sea) and Silver Nova (Silversea).
- February 2027: Silver Spirit (Silversea) and Carnival Firenze, which will be based in Miami until 8 May 2027 after leaving Long Beach and sailing around South America, and will then move to New York for the summer, as Carnival announced in 2025.
- June 2027: Norwegian Aura, Norwegian Cruise Line’s new ship, which will be based in Miami from that month.
- August 2027: Hero of the Seas, the fourth Icon class ship of Royal Caribbean, with 7-night Caribbean cruises.
