100 cruises sailed from Baltimore in 2012

100 cruises sailed from Baltimore in 2012, port posts 2nd highest cruise passenger count

BALTIMORE (AP) -- Nearly a quarter million passengers set sail from Baltimore on cruises last year.

State officials announced Wednesday that the more than 240,000 passengers were second only to the year before when more than 251,000 passengers set sail from Baltimore. A total of 100 cruises left the port in 2012.

Cruise ships began making year-round stops at the port in 2009. Gov. Martin O'Malley says the total economic value to the state from cruises at the Port of Baltimore is about $90 million. And about 220 direct jobs are generated by cruise activity.

Carnival Cruise Lines and Royal Caribbean International offer year-round cruises from Baltimore. The ships sail to the Bahamas, Bermuda, Caribbean, and New England/Canada.