Construction is underway on a new Carnival Corp. Cruise Line terminal in Japan, with the hopes it will be completed and open for business by the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Located in Sasebo, Japan, the terminal—to be named the Uragashira Cruise Terminal—was designed by the renowned maritime architectural firm of Berenblum Busch Architects.
And this will be unlike any cruise ship terminal you’ve ever seen.
“The design concept for Uragashira was to create a ‘cruise terminal in a nature park,’” the firm said in a statement. “Sasebo is an area known for its 10,000 islands and we want travelers to feel like they’re in a park and not a parking lot. We accomplished this by respecting and conforming with the surrounding nature and adding additional vegetation to the site.”
The 50,000-square foot terminal, just one story high, will have a curved roof that extends past the terminal itself and flows toward the hills. Of course, it is also built on the sea, and it’s concrete, glass and steel composition is designed to withstand typhoons and earthquakes.
Japan is hoping to improve the infrastructure of its ports to increase the number of cruise travelers.
Officials hope the new cruise terminal is open by the July 24, 2020 opening ceremonies of the Tokyo Summer Olympics.
