Local architecture studio Arquitectonica has shaped the MSC Cruise Terminal, the world's largest cruise terminal by size, in Miami to accommodate three ships at once.

Arquitectonica designed a slim, elongated building for the building, which processes 36,000 daily passengers through its 492,000-square-feet (45,700 square metres).

Arquitectonica has completed the world's largest cruise terminal at Port MiamiArquitectonica has completed the world's largest cruise terminal at Port Miami

Its western end rises up to accommodate a grand lobby, with a mirrored peak rising away to hold the VIP lounges nearer the middle. The building then trails out in a thin tail, which holds embarkation and disembarkation gates.

It stretches along the easternmost tip of Dodge Island, which spans diagonally between Miami Beach and Downtown Miami and contains Port Miami, a long stretch of individual terminals that service Miami's many cruise companies.

The building's linear form was partially shaped by the need for organised and efficient loading, according to the team, "with minimal overlap or delay".

"Embarkation and debarkation are vertically organised, allowing both processes to occur simultaneously with minimal overlap or delay," said the team.

"This concept is reflected in the building's dynamic, linear form, which mirrors the directionality and movement of passengers and ships."

The terminal services ships from cruise companies MSC Cruises and Explora Journeys, both as a destination point for passengers exploring locally or cruises headed to the Caribbean.

The terminal is capable of accommodating, or berthing, three full-sized ships end-to-end simultaneously. Typically, while ports may see hundreds of ships pass through them each day, a terminal is capable of handling one mega-ship at a time.

The development also contains a 2,400-car parking garage for passengers.

Inside, the building rises to four storeys at its highest point, with a largely open interior with wooden walls, terrazzo floors, and wavy blue carpet. Gates, seating areas, and an enormous screen that casts an underwater scene fill the space.

It also contains biometric screening for passengers to "increase security and expedite movement", according to the team. 

The project is pursuing LEED Gold certification with infrastructure to power future LNG vessels, ships that use liquefied natural gas instead of diesel.

The project broke ground in 2022 and officially opened in April 2025.

It joins another terminal at Port Miami for Virgin Voyages, also designed by Architectonica, completed in 2022.

"It joins a growing roster of recently completed cruise terminals at the port, further shaping the architectural identity of the Cruise Capital of the World," said the team. 

In 2024, the world's largest cruise ship set sail from Miami amid sustainability concerns surrounding the use of LNG, while the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation announced cruises informed by the late architect last year.

The images are by Robin Hill, courtesy MSC Cruises.