Port Tampa Bay and Carnival Cruise Lines celebrating 30 years of setting sail from Tampa Bay

TAMPA, Fla. - Over the years, the cruise industry has become a huge economic driver, bringing in tourism dollars the local economy has come to rely on.

It's a vacation experience with everything you think you might need all in one place, from gambling to food to entertainment.

"It's a shared experience, and you can find anything you want to do to either relax or to energize," Carnival Cruise Lines Chief Communications Officer Chris Chiames said.

Cruising has become a Tampa staple, and it all started 30 years ago when Carnival Cruise Lines first set sail from Port Tampa Bay back in 1994 with the now-retired Carnival Tropicale.

"We are becoming more and more a very attractive destination as a home port. Our walkability, the city is becoming a combination of a new modern city, and then we have the history of Ybor City," Port Tampa Bay Executive Vice-President Raul Alfonso said.

According to Port Tampa Bay, the cruising industry accounts for about 20 percent of their yearly revenue. Every time a ship sets sail, the port says it generates a $400,000 economic impact trickling down to local hotels and restaurants.

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"Thirty years here in Tampa means a lot to us as a company. We're proud to be a part of the Tampa Bay community and to generate so much economic activity and the tourism economy that's part of our ecosystem," Chiames said.

Port Tampa Bay sees about one million passengers per year. While it's not as busy as Port of Miami or Port Canaveral, Alfonso says it offers something different you can't find at other ports.

"At many other ports they either have to take a taxi or walk very far to go to amenities. This is all here, and we see it being created with the developments on Water Street, Sparkman Wharf, the aquarium nearby," Alfonso said.

Today, Carnival operates two ships from Port Tampa Bay, Carnival Paradise and Carnival Legend, which offer trips to the Bahamas, Mexico and other Caribbean destinations. Chiames says Tampa's central location will always make it a popular spot for Florida residents to cruise from.

"Tampa Bay has a great drive market for the surrounding area and so that's part of how we market and that's part of our appeal to attract so many families and first-time cruisers or people just wanting a vacation," Chiames said.

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