Ports play an increasingly important role in the freight transportation chain due to containerization.High vessel flows and higher densities increase the relevance of the non-terminal related processes.Several simulation models have been developed in the recent decades with different goals,but their abilities to represent realistic vessel traffic in ports differ.In this paper,we identify the main navigational processes and operations related to the port nautical infrastructure,and review and assess the current port simulation models.This survey represents an exhaustive review of the state-of-the-art of simulation models for port assessment purposes focussing on safety and capacity.The model assessment focuses on the identification of the relevant criteria to represent vessel navigation,based on which processes are covered by each model and how they have been considered in each model.The assessment covers the nautical infrastructure representation and the navigational behaviour.The outcome of this review will be used for the development of a simulation based port assessment methodology.Future port simulation models should include the suitable criteria for a more realistic traffic representation that allows a proper safety and capacity port analysis and assessment.