Port strike won't affect Florida cruises. Here's a list of seaports, cruise ship ports here

Jennifer Sangalang and Dave Berman, USA TODAY NETWORK - Florida
·3 min read
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How many ports are in Florida? And how many cruise ship ports do we have? There is a difference.

A strike by longshore workers that started Tuesday is expected to affect cargo operations throughout the eastern United States, with the potential to negatively impact the supply of a wide range of goods at grocery stores and other retailers.

About 45,000 union workers walked off the job just after midnight Tuesday, Oct. 1, affecting 36 ports along the Atlantic Coast and the Gulf of Mexico — from Searsport, Maine, to Brownsville, Texas — that handle about one-half of U.S. ocean imports. The strike is against United States Maritime Alliance, a coalition of ocean container carriers, port associations and terminal operators.

Travelers may be wondering, "is my cruise vacation safe?" Though the port strike is affecting 36 ports, the International Longshoremen's Association is not striking against cruise lines or military operations.

Here's info about Florida's many seaports and why the strike will not affect cruise ship vacations sailing out of Florida's cruise ship ports.

How many ports are in Florida?

The Florida Department of State lists 15 seaports here, which falls under tourism and recreation.

  • Canaveral Port Authority at Port Canaveral, Florida

  • Port Citrus in Inverness, Florida

  • Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, Florida

  • Port of Fernandina in Fernandina Beach, Florida

  • Port of Fort Pierce in Fort Pierce, Florida

  • Port of Jacksonville aka "JaxPort" in Jacksonville, Florida

  • Port of Key West in Key West, Florida

  • Port Manatee in Palmetto, Florida

  • Port of Miami aka "PortMiami" in Miami, Florida

  • Port of Palm Beach in Riviera Beach, Florida

  • Port Panama City in Panama City, Florida

  • Port of Pensacola in Pensacola, Florida

  • Port of Port St. Joe in Port St. Joe, Florida

  • Port St. Petersburg in St. Petersburg, Florida

  • Port Tampa Bay in Tampa, Florida

How many cruise ship ports are in Florida?

Florida has seven cruise ports, two of which are the busiest cruise ship ports in the world (Port Miami and Port Canaveral).

  • PortMiami

  • Port Canaveral

  • Port Everglades

  • Port Tampa Bay

  • JaxPort

  • Port of Palm Beach

Will port strike affect my cruise vacation? Will strike impact cruise ships sailing out of Florida?

According to FLORIDA TODAY, cruise vacations sailing out of Port Canaveral will not be affected by the strike. Same for South Florida's huge cruise industry − the Longshoremen strike will not affect cruise vacations sailing out of PortMiami and Port Everglades, a CBS News story filed Tuesday, Oct. 1, states.

The strike by longshore workers is expected to affect cargo operations across the eastern U.S., with the potential to negatively impact the supply of a wide range of goods at grocery stores and other retailers.

But Port Canaveral will not be directly affected, because the port's cargo operators use nonunion labor to load and unload cargo vessels docked there ― and not members of the striking International Longshoremen's Association.

Photos of Port Canaveral, Florida, one of the busiest ports in the world

Port Canaveral, one of the busiest ports in the world, is home to Disney Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean Cruises, Carnival Cruise Line and others.

Port Canaveral also is home to SpaceX drone ships such as Just Read the Instructions and A Shortfall of Gravitas that retrieve the Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rocket boosters in the Atlantic after a rocket launch from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station or Kennedy Space Center.

Photos of Port of Jacksonville or JaxPort in Jacksonville, Florida

Contributing: Medora Lee, USA TODAY

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Port strike: Impact on Florida cruises, info about Longshoremen