Quebec’s international cruise season industry kicked off Sunday with the arrival of the Viking Octantis in the Magdalen Islands, and by the time it concludes Nov. 5 with a visit of Silverseas’ Silver Shadow to Quebec, it is expected to have been the longest season in history.

With more than 300 stopovers planned for the nine Saint Lawrence ports of call in 2023, and over 460,000 expected passengers, it is “proof positive” that cruising is not only back on track in the province but ahead of schedule, according to provincial cruise executives.

“Last year, we set our sights on a return to 2019 levels of performance by 2025. We are now confident that we will achieve this goal earlier than initially anticipated,” says René Trépanier, executive director of the Cruise the Saint Lawrence (CSL) association, who adds that 43 different ships will visit the shores, including a dozen or so for the first time.

Last year marked the relaunch of cruise operations after a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic. But with onboard capacity reduced because of health regulations, only 267,000 passengers visited, based on 248 stopovers.

CSL, whose mission is to grow cruise market activities in Québec and across the ‘Destination Canada New England’ is supported by Tourism Québec, and other provincial and national departments, and includes nine Saint Lawrence ports of call – Montréal, Trois-Rivières, Québec, Saguenay, Baie-Comeau, Sept-Îles, Havre Saint-Pierre, Gaspé and Îles de la Madeleine.