The cruise market, one of the most profitable segments of leisure tourism, is often considered as the outlier of the global travel industry. In fact, while the
accounted for over two-thirds of travel and tourism’s revenue worldwide in 2023, breaking down the
shows a very different story. That year, offline sales represented more than three-quarters of the cruises’ revenue worldwide, revealing that travel agents still play an essential role in this market. That is likely because booking a cruise can be a rather complex process, as buyers have to choose among several options, such as dining services, cabin categories, and onboard activities. Overall, after being hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, cruises proved their resilience as a tourism product. In 2023, the
nearly caught up with pre-pandemic levels, exceeding 25 billion U.S. dollars. This figure was forecast to increase further in the following year, peaking at an estimated 30 billion U.S. dollars in 2024.
What are the biggest global cruise markets?
Looking at the
leading source regions for cruise tourism reveals that North America far outpaces other major cruise markets like Western Europe and Asia based on passenger volume, with more than 18 million cruisegoers departing from this region in 2023. Data on the
world’s leaders in cruise revenue largely reflect this scenario. That year, the United States, with its long coastlines and access to many nearby ports in the tropical Caribbean Sea, generated sales roughly five times and six times higher than Germany and China, respectively. Meanwhile, with the number of passengers surpassing pre-pandemic levels, the Caribbean, the Bahamas, and Bermuda ranked as the
most visited cruise destinations worldwide in 2023, welcoming just under 13 million tourists. Central and Western Mediterranean countries followed on the list, attracting approximately four million cruise passengers.
What are the leading cruise companies worldwide?
A handful of U.S.-based players dominate today’s global cruise market, namely Carnival Corporation, Royal Caribbean Cruises, and Norwegian Cruise Line. Although Royal Caribbean Cruises operates some of the
largest cruise ships worldwide, the brand’s main competitor Carnival Corporation remains the leading global cruise company based on revenue. In 2023,
Carnival Corporation & plc’s global revenue reached nearly 22 billion U.S. dollars, the highest figure reported by the cruise line to date. Meanwhile,
Royal Caribbean Cruises’ revenue worldwide also peaked in 2023, being around 27 percent higher than in 2019. Thus, although the financial losses caused by the pandemic and the costs from investments in new ships are not to be overlooked, the passenger and revenue figures are good cause for optimism, as the cruise market is smooth sailing again.
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