Funchal Welcomed 11 Cruise Ships for 2025 New Year Fireworks

Funchal hosted 11 cruise ships as part of its New Year celebrations, giving guests prime views of the city’s iconic fireworks display.

The lineup featured vessels from nine cruise lines: P&O Cruises, AIDA Cruises, Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines, Cunard Line, Hapag-Lloyd Cruises, Phoenix Reisen, Saga Cruises, Marella Cruises, and TUI Cruises.

Arriving between December 30 and 31, 2024, the ships remained in the Portuguese port city on Madeira Island to enjoy the midnight fireworks on January 1, 2025. The celebration was expected to bring over 18,500 passengers and nearly 8,000 crew members to the island.

The largest vessel in port was Cunard Line’s new Queen Anne, which debuted earlier this year. Carrying 3,000 passengers, the ship docked in Funchal on December 31 as part of a 14-night Canary Islands cruise.

TUI Cruises also marked the occasion with the Mein Schiff 5 and Mein Schiff 7, which brought nearly 6,000 German passengers to Madeira.

Other participating ships included Hapag-Lloyd’s Europa, Phoenix Reisen’s Amera, and AIDA Cruises’ AIDAblu, the latter of which is sailing a seven-night itinerary from Las Palmas.

Saga Cruises was represented by its entire fleet, comprising the Spirit of Adventure and Spirit of Discovery. Meanwhile, P&O Cruises and Marella Cruises contributed to the festivities with the Aurora and Marella Explorer, respectively.

In addition to Funchal, Copacabana Beach in Brazil is a popular destination for cruise ships on New Year’s Eve. Six vessels docked there, bringing 19,500 passengers and 7,500 crew to celebrate the arrival of 2025.