Trading ports and marinas: there are many in various parts of the world, some huge, others smaller. Many cities over the centuries have developed precisely around the port, a fundamental element for trade and for the growth of the city itself. In more recent times, the tourist phenomenon has arisen, so that many pre-existing ports have had to be equipped to accommodate millions of passengers a year, or ad hoc ports have been created to meet this demand.
The 10 largest and most important commercial ports in the world
The traffic carried by commercial ports is evaluated with a parameter called TEU, which stands for'Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit': translated, it is the twenty-foot equivalent unit, which is the standard measure of volume in container transport according to ISO standards, and corresponds to about 40 cubic metres in total. Most containers in fact have standard measurements, with lengths from 20 feet (1 TEU) and 40 feet (2 TEU). So what is the ranking of the world's largest and most important commercial ports?
Let's find out thanks to the latest data published by the World Shipping Council, the global trade association that regulates international liner shipping.
Port ofShanghai, China: 42.01 million TAU
Port ofSingapore: 36.60 million TAU
Port ofShenzhen, China: 27.74 million TAU
Ningbo-Zhoushan Port, China: 26.35 million TAU
Guangzhou Harbor, China: 21.87 million TAU
Busan Port, South Korea: 21.66 million TAU
Port ofHong Kong, China: 19.60 million TAU
Port ofQingdao, China: 18.26 million TAU
Port ofTianjin, China: 16.00 million TAU
Port Jebel Ali, Dubai: 14.95 million TAU
The 10 Largest and Most Important Marinas in the World
Marinas often consist of truly mammoth buildings and areas; their ranking is built on the basis of the number of passengers passing through them annually.
Analysing the ranking of the world's largest and most important tourist ports, one notices the predominant presence of the United States of America.
Below is a list of the busiest ports, sorted by annual passenger average over the past five years. There is no single international source that analyses all the world's ports, so the data was collected by cross-referencing various official national sources.
Port ofMiami, USA: 4,850,000 passengers
Port ofEverglades, USA: 4,160,000 passengers
Port ofCanaveral, United States of America: 4,000,000 passengers
Port ofNassau, Bahamas: 3,410,000 passengers
Port ofCozumel, Mexico: 2,700,000 passengers
Port ofBarcelona, Spain: 2,360,000 passengers
Port ofCivitavecchia, Italy: 2,140,000 passengers
Port ofVirgin Island, USA: 2,080,000 passengers
Port ofSt. Martin, France / Netherlands: 2,000,000 passengers
Port ofVenice, Italy: 1,720,000 passengers
SEE ALSO: THE WORLD'S LARGEST CRUISE SHIPS