2023 Cruise Industry Update

2023 Cruise Industry Update
Cruise tourism is expected to exceed pre-pandemic passenger volumes by 6%. This contrasts with the rate of overall international tourism which is only 80 – 95% of 2019. In fact, cruises continue to be one of the fasters growing sectors of tourism.
The world’s largest cruise port operator, Global Ports Holdings, reported nearly twice as many passengers for the three months from April through June, leading to a quarterly revenue increase of 60%.
There appears to be clear enthusiasm for cruising by the public. Current global cruise capacity is ~644,000 and is expected to increase 19% to 746,000 in 2028. Some estimates put the number of cruise passengers at 40 million per year by the end of 2027.
Younger generations are driving demand for tourism.
88% of Millennials and 86% of Gen-X travelers who have cruised before say they plan to cruise again.
77% of Millennials and 73% of Gen-X express interest in cruising.
Younger cruise travelers are more likely to turn to travel advisors to book their cruises than older generations.
Younger cruise travelers are also traveling with older generations. Multi-generational cruise travel looks set to increase.
Cruise lines are offering shorter and longer cruise itineraries to attract first time guests. Despite adding both short and long voyages, there is more demand for longer cruises, especially among repeat cruise guests.
The Big Three Cruise Lines
The share prices of the big three cruise lines are up big this year. Carnival is up over 90%, Royal Caribbean has doubled, and Norwegian Cruise Line is up almost 40%.
Royal Caribbean experienced record-breaking demand for its new flagship Icon of the Seas which is slated to set sail later this year. The ship can host more than 5,600 guests across 6 waterslides, 7 pools, 19 floors, and over 40 bars and restaurants.
The decade from 2010 to 2019 led to Carnival Corporation making over $24 billion in operating profits, $3.3 billion of which in 2019 alone. The cruise line almost went bankrupt during the first three years of Covid-19.
Despite a surge in revenue, Carnival Corporation reported an operating loss of $4.4 billion in 2022. The company faces significant operating expenses. For example, Fuel alone was $2.2 billion in 2022.
Trends
Solo cruises travel is on the rise as more single-cabin capacity is being added to new ships. Existing ships are being retrofitted for solo travelers.
There is a focus on being environmentally friendly. LNG is being emphasized as a transitional fueld as new fuel and propulsion technology is explored. LNG is the cleanest fueld available at scale, and is becoming more readily available.
The Carribeean remainds the top destination for cruise travelers followed by Europe, Alaska, and the West Coast of North America.
If we look at this visual you see average guest age on the X-axis, and average length of days in the y axis. It appears that cruises in asia are shorter and attract a younger crowd. Australia, New Zealand, and Pacific cruises tend to draw an older crowd for a length of between 7 to 8 days. Scandinavia and Iceland cruises are among the longest with an average length of over 10 days.
The top ports include Miami, Port Canaveral, Cozumel, and Port Everglades.

Luxury Cruise Market
The luxury cruise market is expected to carry over 1 million guests in 2023 versus 600,000 in 2019.
Most cruise ships maintain a ratio of 1 crew member for every 2 to 3 passengers.
The National Geographic Islander II is part of an alliance between Lindblad Expeditions and National Geographic travel. The ship accommodates only 48 passengers and offers a 1:1 guest-to-crew ratio. It is based on the Galapagos Islands.
Works Cited:
https://read.chartr.co/newsletters/2023/9/10/cruising-back
https://www.wsj.com/story/six-lessons-learned-from-a-sold-out-cruise-vacation-212cea68?mod=Searchresults_pos2&page=1
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/expeditions/ships/national-geographic-islander-ii/
https://cruising.org/-/media/clia-media/research/2023/2023-clia-state-of-the-cruise-industry-report_low-res.ashx
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