Sicily is preparing to celebrate a record year in the cruise sector. According to estimates compiled by Risposte Turismo, the island will exceed the threshold of 2 million passengers handled for the first time in 2025, marking a growth of +10% compared to 2024. A milestone achieved thanks to an increase in port calls: for the first time, there will be over 1,000 ship calls during the year, with an increase of +17% on 2024.
The data speaks of Sicily’s national leadership in terms of the number of port calls and the number of active cruise ports, which amount to 12 (Palermo, Messina, Catania, Siracusa, Giardini Naxos, Trapani, Lipari, Porto Empedocle, Pozzallo, Milazzo, Licata and Termini Imerese) and which will lead the region to almost double the number of cruise passengers in the last 10 years (in 2016 it was just over 1.1 million).
This year, Sicily will compete with Campania for the third step of the podium in the ranking of regional cruise traffic by number of cruise passengers handled (2.1 and 2.2 million cruise passengers, respectively).
At the level of individual ports, the estimates from Risposte Turismo indicate Palermo confirmed as the first Sicilian port, exceeding one million passengers handled for the first time and recording 280 ship calls. The Sicilian capital will be the fourth Italian cruise port. Messina follows with over a thousand cruise passengers handled and 250 ship calls (Messina will be the eighth Italian port) and Catania will exceed a thousand passengers handled for the eighth time, remaining among the top Italian ports (in 14th place at the end of 2025).
Overall, thanks to the results of Palermo and Messina, Sicily will be the second most represented Italian region in the ranking of the top 20 cruise ports in the Mediterranean, right behind Liguria (Genoa, Savona and La Spezia).
The centrality of the region is demonstrated by the fact that nine out of ten companies calling in Italy this year (56 out of 64, equal to 87.5%) have visited at least one Sicilian port. Palermo hosts the highest number of companies (38, equal to 60% of the companies calling in Italy), followed by Messina and Catania.
Sicily also stands out as one of the most “de-seasonalized” regions in Italy, with over 60% of the traffic recorded outside the summer quarter (in the autumn-winter and spring period between September and May). It is significant that October 2024 marked a record for passengers welcomed (over 276 thousand).
Confirming the growth prospects, Risposte Turismo detected approximately 500 million euros of investments planned in the next three-year period (2026-2028) in Sicilian cruise ports. The main investments include: 222 million allocated for new structures and modernizations, 65.5 million are planned for seabed dredging to increase accessibility and 62.9 million for projects concerning numerous Sicilian cruise terminals, including 30 million for a new terminal in Trapani and 23.4 million for the new terminal and quay at the Crispi pier in Porto Empedocle.
These funds are in addition to the Pnrr funds for the electrification of docks (cold ironing), for a total of 171.2 million euros (of which 115.2 million in 2023-2025 and 56 million euros in 2026-2028).
