Take a cruise, and do your part to help the economy!

Not only is cruising fun, it's a great way to support your country. The North American cruise industry is responsible for over 330,000 jobs nationwide and added $32.4 billion to the US economy in 2005, according to an annual study by the International Council of Cruise Lines.

Despite challenges in 2005 presented by weather and new ship delivery delays, the spending figures reflects an increase of nearly 8 percent over the 2004 total. Cruise lines benefit virtually all 50 states from cruise passenger spending, shoreside staffing for US-based cruise lines, provisions for cruise ships purchased in the US, maintenance and repair operations, and payment for port taxes to US cities.

One hundred ninety-two vessels called at US ports in 2005, with a capacity of 245,755 lower berths. US ports handled 75 percent of all global cruise embarkations --– more than 8.6 million passengers. The top ten US cruise embarkation ports are Miami, Port Everglades (Ft. Lauderdale), Port Canaveral, Los Angeles, Galveston, Tampa, New York City, Long Beach, Seattle, and New Orleans.