Cruise Industry Atlas · Cruise industry · Edition of 14 October 2026
The cruise industry, mapped and measured.
The global cruise industry in one sourced view: H&K's analytical partition into six segments, demand, fleet, owners, yield and occupancy defined, regulation, scenarios and a dated, graded fact bank. Segments are an H&K analytical partition: industry labels overlap, so each brand is placed by its fleet majority and exceptions are disclosed. Every number carries its source, date, universe and grade; our inferences are labelled.
Hawkes & Kwortnik · Published · 50 audited facts · Next review
01 · The 60-second orientation
A large, concentrated industry measured in several incompatible universes.
What it is. Cruising sells a multi-night holiday aboard a ship: transport, bed, food and much of the entertainment in one price, with onboard spending on top. The ocean industry is the large part of it; river cruising is a separate, physically constrained market with its own statistics (see the river cruise market).
How big. CLIA counted a record 37.2 million ocean-going passengers in 2025 1. Capacity, measured in lower berths, stood at 764,310 at the end of 2025, against 733,010 a year earlier 2; H&K calculation from those two figures puts berth growth at about 4.3% in the year 2.
Who owns it. Four groups account for roughly 80% of capacity 2. Three of them file detailed annual reports with US regulators; MSC, privately held, does not, so its share is visible mainly through competitors' disclosures.
Why the numbers rarely agree. A "global" number may come from CLIA (its members only), from a company filing (its own fleet and its own fiscal year), or from a regulator (one jurisdiction). These universes overlap but do not add up. This page keeps each figure in its own universe and does not blend them.
02 · How we cut the industry
An H&K analytical partition, not an industry standard.
Industry labels overlap. Brands market themselves across several tiers, and trade press, CLIA and companies each use different cuts. What follows is an H&K analytical partition by product and operating model. We classify by vessel first and roll up to brand; a brand that straddles two segments is marked as an edge case on its segment page.
Contemporary ocean
High-capacity, broad-market resort ships. The ship is the destination; family and multigenerational; entertainment-led with à la carte onboard spending. Typical brands: Carnival Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean International, MSC Cruises, Norwegian Cruise Line, Costa, AIDA, P&O Cruises.
Premium ocean
Mid-to-upper market, destination- and service-led, generally smaller ships and more included in the fare. Distinct from contemporary. Typical brands: Celebrity, Princess, Holland America, Cunard, Viking (ocean); Virgin Voyages is an edge case.
Luxury ocean & yacht
High space and service ratios, inclusive pricing, residential and private-yacht adjacency. Brands include Regent Seven Seas, Silversea, Seabourn, Explora Journeys and the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection; Oceania is an edge case.
Expedition
Polar, remote, nature- and learning-led voyages on specialist vessels with landing operations and expedition staff, governed by permits and landing rules. Assigned by vessel, not by brand.
River
Cabin ships on inland rivers, sized to their locks and moored in town centres. Most statistics on this page exclude it; it has its own fact pack.
Small-ship, coastal & sailing
Coastal and non-river inland routes, boutique small ships, sailing vessels and regional specialty itineraries that are not primarily expedition, such as the Norwegian coastal service, Windstar, Star Clippers and American Cruise Lines.
Cross-cutting formats: overlays, not segments
Some products are defined by format rather than by ship or operating model. They sit on top of a segment and are not counted as segments in their own right.
| Format (overlay) | What defines it | Where it usually sits | Why it is not a segment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adults-only | Guest age policy | Premium (e.g. Virgin Voyages), some luxury and river | A policy on an otherwise ordinary ship and operating model |
| Themed and full-ship charter | One organiser buys the whole ship or programme | Any ocean segment | Same ship, different distribution |
| World cruise | Long, often multi-month itinerary, sold whole or in sectors | Premium and luxury | An itinerary type, not a fleet |
| Short or "getaway" cruise | Brief sailings, often to nearby or private-island ports | Contemporary | A product length within the contemporary model |
| Residential | Ships with owned or long-lease residences | Luxury and yacht | A tenure model, with very few ships |
| Destination-led and private-island | The port or owned destination is the main product | Contemporary (private islands); premium, river and expedition (destination-led) | A positioning applied across segments |
Placement and rationale are H&K characterisation. No public source allocates global passenger or capacity totals on this partition, so segment pages report segment-native evidence and never shares of a global total.
03 · Definitions before comparisons
How to read a cruise number.
Cruise companies report a common vocabulary with uncommon definitions. Read the definitions here before any operator comparison on this page or on the segment pages. Cross-company comparisons are indicative only.
Yield
"Yield" is revenue per unit of capacity or per unit of use, and each company chooses both the numerator and the denominator. All the net yield measures below are non-GAAP.
- Royal Caribbean Group: Net Yields are Adjusted Gross Margin per available passenger cruise day (APCD) (non-GAAP) 3.
- Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings: Net Yield is Adjusted Gross Margin per Capacity Day, where Capacity Days are berths available for sale multiplied by cruise days (non-GAAP) 4.
- Viking: Net Yield is Adjusted Gross Margin divided by passenger cruise days (PCDs), that is per occupied day rather than per available day (non-GAAP) 5.
A yield per available day falls when ships sail emptier; a yield per occupied day does not. The two are not the same measure and should not be ranked against each other.
Occupancy
Occupancy is passenger cruise days divided by available days, where available capacity assumes two guests per cabin (lower berths). Because third and fourth guests in a cabin count as extra passenger days, occupancy can exceed 100%; that is a convention, not overbooking 2. Viking does not sell more than two guests per two-berth stateroom, so its occupancy is capped at 100% and is not comparable with the others 5.
Berths and capacity days
- Lower berths: capacity counted at two per cabin. It is the standard unit for fleet and industry capacity 2.
- ALBDs (Carnival): available lower berth days 2.
- APCDs (Royal Caribbean): double occupancy per cabin multiplied by cruise days, excluding cancelled days and cabins not available for sale 3.
- Capacity Days (NCLH): berths available for sale multiplied by cruise days 4.
- PCDs: passenger cruise days, guests multiplied by days aboard.
Three universes that do not add up
- Global: the whole ocean-going fleet, whoever owns it. The global berth count on this page is a trade-data figure reported in Carnival's annual report 2.
- CLIA-member: lines that belong to Cruise Lines International Association. CLIA states its members hold 91% of global ocean-going lower berths in 2026 6, so its passenger and fleet counts are near-global but not global.
- Company: one group's own fleet, in its own fiscal year. Carnival's year runs December to November 2; Royal Caribbean and NCLH report to 31 December 3 4.
Passengers are not passenger days. A company's "passengers carried" counts embarkations; its PCDs count nights aboard. A short-cruise brand carries many passengers on modest capacity.
04 · Demand
Record volumes, and a heavy reliance on North America.
Global passengers
CLIA reported 37.2 million ocean-going passengers in 2025, a record 1. Its forecast, produced with Tourism Economics, runs to 42.1 million in 2029 6. That is a trade-association forecast, not an outturn, and it covers the CLIA-member universe.
Of the 37.2 million, 20.5 million sailed on cruises typically embarked in the United States 6. The US public-health regulator gives a consistent order of magnitude from a different angle: more than 20 million passengers embarked from North American ports in 2025 7. The two figures use different universes (CLIA members, typical US embarkation; all ships in the CDC programme, North American ports) and are not reconciled here.
Company volumes
The large groups report their own counts. Carnival carried 13.6 million passengers in its 2025 fiscal year 2; Royal Caribbean Group 9,446,010 in calendar 2025 3; NCLH 2,997,829 4; Viking 791,582 across river, ocean and expedition 5. These are company universes on different fiscal years and include brands outside CLIA's ocean count (Viking's river business, for example); they are not to be summed or set against the CLIA total.
Source markets
Where guests come from, and where they sail, are tightly linked. CLIA's 2026 report shows the USA supplying 86.7% of Caribbean cruisers and 20.2% of Mediterranean cruisers, while Germany supplies 45.7% of non-Mediterranean European cruisers 6.
The consequence is that the Caribbean, the industry's largest arena, depends almost entirely on one source market's consumer. European itineraries draw on a more mixed base, with Germany dominant in northern Europe.
Loyalty
Repeat business is a measurable asset for some operators. Viking reports that repeat guests rose from 27% in its 2015 season to 54% in 2025 5. This is one company's disclosure, not an industry rate.
05 · Supply
Fleet, orderbook and the groups that own them.
Fleet
Global ocean capacity reached 764,310 lower berths at 31 December 2025, up from 733,010 in 2024 and 701,110 in 2023 2. CLIA counts 327 member ocean-going ships with about 692,000 lower berths in 2026, which it says is 91% of the global ocean-going total 6. The two counts have different dates and different universes; the gap between them is not a measure of non-member capacity.
Orderbook
New ships are contracted years ahead. Carnival had seven cruise ships under contract for delivery through 2033, with Fincantieri and Meyer Werft 2. The Royal Caribbean brand alone had four ships on order with about 22,500 berths 3. NCLH expects to add 17 ships from 2026 through 2037 4. CLIA's 2025 edition counted 56 new member ocean ships on order for 2025 to 2036 8. Orderbooks are reported here as ships and berths as each source states them; we do not add them together.
Concentration
Carnival, Royal Caribbean Group, NCLH and MSC Cruises together held about 80% of industry capacity at the end of 2025 2. Concentration matters for the reader of statistics: a few filings describe most of the industry, and one large private group, MSC, does not publish comparable figures.
Balance sheets
The groups are still working down pandemic-era borrowing. Carnival completed a $19 billion refinancing plan in December 2025 and has cut total debt by more than $10 billion since its January 2023 peak 2. Royal Caribbean Group's total debt was $21,902 million at the end of 2025 3; NCLH's was about $14,606 million 4.
Player map: the big groups and where their brands sit
| Owner | Reported fleet (company universe) | Brands and H&K segment | Placement rationale |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carnival Corporation & plc | 94 ships, 272,380 passenger capacity at 30 Nov 2025 2 | Carnival Cruise Line, Costa, AIDA, P&O Cruises (contemporary); Princess, Holland America, Cunard (premium); Seabourn (luxury, expedition ships assigned by vessel) | Widest spread of any group; weight sits in contemporary resort ships |
| Royal Caribbean Group | 69 ships, about 179,720 berths at 31 Dec 2025, Global and Partner Brands combined 3 | Royal Caribbean International (contemporary); Celebrity (premium); Silversea (luxury, expedition ships by vessel); partner brands TUI Cruises and Hapag-Lloyd via joint venture | Contemporary flagship brand dominates; partner-brand capacity sits in a joint venture, not wholly owned |
| Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings | 34 ships, about 71,400 berths at 31 Dec 2025 4 | Norwegian Cruise Line (contemporary); Oceania (edge case, placed in luxury); Regent Seven Seas (luxury) | One contemporary brand plus a smaller upper-market portfolio |
| MSC Group | Not disclosed in comparable filings; part of the ~80% four-group share 2 | MSC Cruises (contemporary); Explora Journeys (luxury) | Private company; placement from product, not reported metrics |
| Viking Holdings | 59 Longships, 12 ocean ships, two expedition ships 5 | Viking River (river); Viking Ocean (premium); Viking Expedition (expedition) | Spans three segments; classified by vessel |
Fleet figures are each company's own universe and date; Carnival's "passenger capacity" and the others' "berths" are lower-berth measures but are not summed here. Brand placement is H&K characterisation.
Global ocean cruise capacity, 2023 to 2025
Industry passenger capacity in lower berths, all ocean cruise ships worldwide, at 31 December of each year, as reported in one Carnival 10-K table.
06 · Economics
Occupancy and yield, each on its owner's definition.
The table sets out what each group reports, on its own definition. It is indicative only: occupancy conventions differ, yield denominators differ, and fiscal years differ. Read section 03 first.
| Company | Occupancy 2025 | Occupancy basis | Yield measure and 2025 datum | Capacity unit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carnival Corporation & plc | 105% (FY Dec–Nov) 2 | PCDs ÷ ALBDs, two per cabin 2 | Not taken into this page's fact bank | 96.5 million ALBDs 2 |
| Royal Caribbean Group | 109.7% 3 | PCD ÷ APCD 3 | Net Yields per APCD, up 3.8% as reported (3.7% constant currency) on 2024 (non-GAAP) 3 | 53,325,212 APCDs 3 |
| Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings | 103.5% 4 | PCD ÷ Capacity Days 4 | Net Yield per Capacity Day (non-GAAP) 4; level not taken into this page's fact bank | 24,433,624 Capacity Days 4 |
| Viking Holdings | 95.4% 5 | PCDs ÷ capacity PCDs, capped at 100% 5 | Net Yield per PCD $583 (non-GAAP) 5 5 | Capacity PCDs, consolidated across river, ocean and expedition |
What the table does and does not say
Royal Caribbean's 109.7% 3 and Carnival's 105% 2 reflect how many cabins carry a third or fourth guest, which is partly a function of family-heavy contemporary itineraries. Viking's 95.4% is measured against a cap of 100% and is not "lower" in the same sense 5. Viking's $583 is per occupied day, consolidated with river; it is not comparable with a per-available-day yield 55.
Fuel and cost
Fuel is the cost line most exposed to regulation. Carnival consumed 2.8 million metric tons of fuel in its 2025 fiscal year, or 29.2 metric tons per thousand ALBDs 2. Royal Caribbean Group reported 2025 net income of $4.3 billion 3.
Net yield figures are non-GAAP and are reported here as each company states them; H&K makes no adjustment to put them on a common basis.
07 · Regulation
Carbon now has a price in European waters.
EU Emissions Trading System
In the European Commission's words: "Since January 2024, the EU's Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) has been extended to cover CO2 emissions from all large ships (of 5 000 gross tonnage and above) entering EU ports, regardless of the flag they fly." 9
The obligation phases in. Allowances surrendered in 2025 covered 40% of 2024 reported emissions 9; in 2026, 70% of 2025 emissions 9; from 2027, 100% 9. Geographic scope, again in the Commission's words: "50% of emissions from voyages starting or ending outside of the EU … 100% of emissions that occur between two EU ports and when ships are within EU ports." 9
IMO rules
Fuel sulphur is capped at 0.5% globally and 0.1% inside emission control areas 3; the Mediterranean became a sulphur ECA on 1 May 2025 4. Since 2023, ships receive an annual A to E carbon-intensity rating, with C or better required 4. The IMO strategy targets an absolute greenhouse-gas cut of at least 20% by 2030 and 70% by 2040 against 2008, and a 40% cut in CO2 intensity by 2030 2. Adoption of the IMO Net-Zero Framework, drafted in April 2025, was postponed in October 2025 to late 2026 2. These IMO points are sourced from company filings, not from the IMO directly.
Public health
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Vessel Sanitation Program covers cruise ships carrying 13 or more passengers on a foreign itinerary with US ports 7. It inspects ships across eight major areas and reviews ship plans in five general areas 7.
Company responses
Royal Caribbean Group's "Destination Net Zero" strategy aims for net zero by 2050 and a net-zero-capable ship by 2035 3; this is a company target, not an outcome. CLIA's 2025 edition said more than 61% of its members' fleet could connect to shore power, with 72% expected by 2028 8; shore power only cuts emissions where ports supply it.
08 · Insight
What the evidence adds up to.
Demand is strong, measured on the industry's own count. A record CLIA-member year 1 and occupancy above the two-per-cabin convention at the three large US-listed groups 2 3 4 point the same way. H&K view: the question for the next cycle is pricing, not filling ships.
Capacity growth is steady, not explosive. H&K calculation from the global berth series gives about 4.3% growth in 2025 2. Orderbooks stretch into the 2030s 2 4, which spreads new supply out.
Concentration shapes what can be known. With four groups holding about 80% of capacity 2, three filings explain most of the market, and the private fourth is mostly seen through others' disclosures.
Regulation is now a cost, not a forecast. EU ETS surrender obligations are already being paid and reach full coverage from 2027 9; the global IMO framework remains undecided 2.
Segments behave differently. Resort-ship economics in contemporary and destination-led economics in premium, luxury and expedition respond to different drivers. That is the reason for the partition.
09 · Scenarios
Three ways the next few years could run.
These are qualitative ranges with named drivers. They are H&K view, not forecasts, and they attach no numbers beyond those cited.
Base: steady growth, pricing tested
New ships arrive on schedule; occupancy stays near current levels; yield growth slows as capacity grows. EU ETS costs rise as scheduled and are partly passed through. Drivers: orderbook delivery, North American consumer spending, fuel prices.
Upside: demand outruns supply
Demand keeps pace with or beats CLIA's forecast path 6; shipyard limits hold supply growth down; groups keep paying down debt. Drivers: first-time cruisers converting, repeat loyalty, disciplined ordering.
Downside: a demand or cost shock
A North American consumer slowdown hits the Caribbean hardest, given its dependence on one source market 6; fuel or carbon costs rise faster than prices; a health or geopolitical event disrupts itineraries. Drivers: macro conditions, fuel and carbon prices, regulatory change.
10 · For investors
What to watch, framed as analysis.
This is analysis of public information, not investment advice. Items marked H&K view are our inference.
- Yield on each company's own basis. Track the direction of each group's net yield against its own history, not against peers; definitions differ 3 4 5.
- Occupancy as a demand gauge. A fall from current levels at the US-listed groups would be an early signal; NCLH's slipped from 104.9% to 103.5% in 2025 4.
- Debt reduction. Continued deleveraging, as Carnival describes 2, widens room for new orders or returns.
- Carbon cost disclosure. H&K view: watch for groups quantifying EU ETS costs as coverage moves to 100% 9, and for any IMO decision 2.
- Orderbook discipline. H&K view: new orders well beyond those disclosed would raise supply risk in the 2030s.
- Source-market concentration. H&K view: the Caribbean's reliance on US guests 6 makes US consumer data a leading indicator for the contemporary segment.
11 · Glossary
Terms used across the atlas.
| Term | Meaning on this site |
|---|---|
| ALBD | Available lower berth day (Carnival's capacity unit). |
| APCD | Available passenger cruise day (Royal Caribbean's capacity unit): double occupancy per cabin times cruise days, excluding cancelled days and cabins not for sale. |
| Capacity Day | NCLH's capacity unit: berths available for sale times cruise days. |
| PCD | Passenger cruise day: guests times days aboard. |
| Lower berth | Capacity counted at two guests per cabin. |
| Occupancy | PCDs divided by available days on the company's own basis; can exceed 100% where cabins carry extra guests. |
| Net yield | Adjusted gross margin divided by a capacity or usage unit chosen by the company; non-GAAP. |
| Orderbook | Contracted newbuild ships with delivery dates; stated in ships and berths. |
| ECA | Emission control area under MARPOL Annex VI, with a tighter fuel sulphur limit. |
| CII / EEXI | IMO carbon-intensity indicator and energy-efficiency index for existing ships. |
| EU ETS | The EU Emissions Trading System, extended to shipping since January 2024. |
| CLIA-member universe | Statistics covering only lines that belong to Cruise Lines International Association. |
| Overlay format | A product format (such as adults-only or world cruise) that sits on top of a segment and is not a segment. |
12 · Method
How this page was built.
Edition. 14 October 2026. Figures are the latest available in each source at that date; each is dated in the fact bank.
Grades. Every figure is graded: A for official or regulatory sources and originating bodies (the European Commission, the CDC, and CLIA as the originating trade association); B for company filings and companies' own pages; C for trade data and trade press, including the global berth series as reported in Carnival's annual report.
Universe labels. Each figure carries its universe: global, CLIA-member, company, or regulatory. Figures from different universes or definitions are never combined into one total. Where we compute anything, it is labelled "H&K calculation" and cites its inputs.
Labels. Net yields and adjusted figures are marked non-GAAP. Company targets are labelled as targets. IMO rules on this page are cited from company filings rather than IMO texts.
Exclusions. Rows that failed the quote audit (where the source text did not support the claim as written) are excluded from the fact bank and from this page. River cruising is excluded from global ocean totals and covered on its own page.
Partition. The segment structure is an H&K analytical partition. No public source allocates global totals to these segments, so segment pages use segment-native evidence only.
Limits. MSC Group publishes no comparable filing; Carnival and NCLH yield levels are not in this edition's fact bank.
Fact bank
Every figure, dated and graded.
Grade A: official statistical, regulatory or industry-body source. Grade B: company filing or the company's own page. Grade C: trade press or secondary reference. The geography column also names the universe (global, CLIA-member, company or segment). Flags mark non-GAAP measures and company marketing claims. Only facts whose quoted source text passed our audit are shown.
| Fact | Value | Denominator / unit | Geography · universe | Period | Grade | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EU ETS covers CO2 from large ships (5,000 GT+) entering EU ports since January 2024, regardless of flag | 5000 | gross tonnage threshold | EU/EEA · regulatory | from 2024-01-01 | A | [9] |
| Phase-in: allowances surrendered in 2025 for 40% of 2024 reported emissions | 40 | % of 2024 reported emissions | EU/EEA · regulatory | surrender year 2025 | A | [9] |
| Phase-in: allowances surrendered in 2026 for 70% of 2025 reported emissions | 70 | % of 2025 reported emissions | EU/EEA · regulatory | surrender year 2026 | A | [9] |
| Phase-in: from 2027 surrender covers 100% of reported emissions (i.e., 2026 emissions onward) | 100 | % of reported emissions | EU/EEA · regulatory | 2027 onwards | A | [9] |
| Geographic scope: 50% of emissions on voyages starting/ending outside EU; 100% between two EU ports and at berth in EU ports | 50 | % of extra-EU voyage emissions (100% intra-EU and at berth) | EU/EEA · regulatory | current | A | [9] |
| Methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) are covered by the shipping ETS only from 2026 | 2026 | start year for CH4/N2O coverage | EU/EEA · regulatory | from 2026 | A | [9] |
| More than 20 million passengers embarked from North American ports in 2025 | 20000000 | passengers (more than) | North America · regulatory | 2025 | A | [7] |
| VSP jurisdiction: cruise ships carrying 13+ passengers with a foreign itinerary with U.S. ports | 13 | passengers (minimum) | United States · regulatory | current | A | [7] |
| VSP inspects cruise ships across eight major areas and reviews ship plans in five general areas | 8 | inspection areas | United States · regulatory | current | A | [7] |
| Global ocean cruise industry passenger capacity (lower berths) as of Dec 31, 2025 was 764,310 (vs 733,010 in 2024; 701,110 in 2023) | 764310 | lower berths (2 per cabin), ocean-going | Global · global | as of 2025-12-31 | C | [2] |
| Carnival, Royal Caribbean Group, NCLH and MSC Cruises together represented ~80% of cruise industry capacity at Dec 31, 2025 | 80 | % of industry capacity (approx.) | Global · global | as of 2025-12-31 | C | [2] |
| Carnival Corp operated 94 cruise ships with 272,380 passenger capacity at Nov 30, 2025 (North America segment 63 ships/64%; Europe segment 31 ships/36%) | 94 | cruise ships | Global · company | as of 2025-11-30 | B | [2] |
| Carnival carried 13.6 million passengers in FY2025 (13.5m FY2024; 12.5m FY2023) | 13.6 | million passengers carried | Global · company | FY2025 (Dec-Nov) | B | [2] |
| Carnival ALBDs 96.5 million and PCDs 101.7 million in FY2025 | 96.5 | million ALBDs | Global · company | FY2025 | B | [2] |
| Carnival occupancy 105% in FY2025 and FY2024 (100% FY2023) | 105 | % occupancy (PCDs/ALBDs) | Global · company | FY2025 | B | [2] |
| Industry occupancy convention: PCDs divided by ALBDs assuming two passengers per cabin; >100% means 3+ passengers in some cabins | PCDs/ALBDs | definition | Global · company | FY2025 | B | [2] |
| Carnival had seven cruise ships under contract for delivery through 2033 (Fincantieri and Meyer Werft) | 7 | ships on order | Global · company | as of 2025-11-30 | B | [2] |
| Carnival fuel consumption 2.8 million metric tons in FY2025; 29.2 metric tons per thousand ALBDs | 2.8 | million metric tons fuel | Global · company | FY2025 | B | [2] |
| Carnival completed $19 billion refinancing plan in Dec 2025 and reduced total debt by over $10 billion since its January 2023 peak | 10 | USD billion debt reduction (more than) | Global · company | Jan 2023 - Dec 2025 | B | [2] |
| Royal Caribbean Group Global + Partner Brands combined fleet of 69 ships, ~179,720 berths at Dec 31, 2025 | 69 | ships (incl. TUI Cruises/Hapag-Lloyd JV) | Global · company | as of 2025-12-31 | B | [3] |
| RCL carried 9,446,010 passengers in 2025 (8,564,272 in 2024) | 9446010 | passengers carried | Global · company | FY2025 | B | [3] |
| RCL APCD 53,325,212 in 2025; occupancy 109.7% (108.5% in 2024) | 109.7 | % occupancy (PCD/APCD) | Global · company | FY2025 | B | [3] |
| RCL defines APCD as double occupancy per cabin times cruise days, excluding canceled days and cabins not for sale | APCD | definition | Global · company | FY2025 | B | [3] |
| RCL Net Yields = Adjusted Gross Margin per APCD (non-GAAP) non-gaap | Adjusted Gross Margin / APCD | definition | Global · company | FY2025 | B | [3] |
| RCL Net Yields increased 3.8% as reported (3.7% constant currency) in 2025 vs 2024; net income $4.3B non-gaap | 3.8 | % YoY change in Net Yields | Global · company | FY2025 vs FY2024 | B | [3] |
| Royal Caribbean brand: 29 ships (~111,000 berths) plus four ships on order (~22,500 berths) at Dec 31, 2025 | 4 | ships on order (Royal Caribbean brand) | Global · company | as of 2025-12-31 | B | [3] |
| RCL total debt $21,902 million at Dec 31, 2025 (vs $20,604m 2024); weighted avg rate 4.69% | 21902 | USD million total debt | Global · company | as of 2025-12-31 | B | [3] |
| NCLH had 34 ships with ~71,400 berths at Dec 31, 2025 and expects 17 additional ships 2026-2037 | 34 | ships | Global · company | as of 2025-12-31 | B | [4] |
| NCLH carried 2,997,829 passengers in 2025; Capacity Days 24,433,624; occupancy 103.5% (104.9% 2024) | 103.5 | % occupancy (PCD/Capacity Days) | Global · company | FY2025 | B | [4] |
| NCLH Net Yield = Adjusted Gross Margin per Capacity Day; Capacity Days = berths available for sale x cruise days non-gaap | Adjusted Gross Margin / Capacity Day | definition | Global · company | FY2025 | B | [4] |
| NCLH total debt $14,606,176 thousand at Dec 31, 2025 (vs $13,100,490 thousand 2024) | 14606.176 | USD million total debt | Global · company | as of 2025-12-31 | B | [4] |
| Viking fleet includes 59 Longships (190 pax), 12 ocean ships (930 or 998 pax, incl. Viking Yidun) and two expedition ships (378 pax) | 12 | ocean ships | Global · company | FY2025 20-F | B | [5] |
| Viking consolidated: 791,582 passengers, occupancy 95.4%, Net Yield $583 in 2025 non-gaap | 95.4 | % occupancy (PCDs/Capacity PCDs, capped at 100%) | Global · company | FY2025 | B | [5] |
| Viking Net Yield = Adjusted Gross Margin divided by Passenger Cruise Days (differs from RCL/NCLH, which divide by capacity days) non-gaap | Adjusted Gross Margin / PCDs | definition | Global · company | FY2025 | B | [5] |
| Viking repeat guest share rose from 27% (2015 season) to 54% (2025 season) | 54 | % repeat guests | Global · company | 2025 season | B | [5] |
| Mediterranean Sea SOx ECA limits took effect May 1, 2025 (MARPOL Annex VI Reg. 14) | 2025-05-01 | effective date | Mediterranean · company | from 2025-05-01 | B | [4] |
| Sulfur limit is 0.5% globally and 0.1% inside ECAs; Norwegian Sea and Canadian Arctic ECAs come into force March 2026 | 0.1 | % fuel sulfur content in ECAs (0.5% global) | Global / ECAs · company | current | B | [3] |
| CII/EEXI in effect from 2023: ships rated A-E annually, C or better required; corrective plan after 3 years of D or one E; 5% intensity cut vs 2019 in 2023 then 2%/yr to 2030 | 5 | % carbon-intensity reduction vs 2019 baseline (2023), +2%/yr | Global · company | 2023-2030 | B | [4] |
| IMO Net-Zero Framework drafted April 2025; in October 2025 member states voted to postpone adoption discussions until late 2026 | late 2026 | adoption discussion postponed to | Global · company | status as of 10-K filing Jan 2026 | B | [2] |
| IMO GHG strategy checkpoints: absolute GHG cut of at least 20% (2030) and 70% (2040) vs 2008; 40% CO2 intensity reduction by 2030 | 40 | % CO2 intensity reduction by 2030 vs 2008 | Global · company | 2030/2040 targets | B | [2] |
| RCL Destination Net Zero: net zero by 2050, net-zero-capable ship by 2035, >=15% carbon-intensity cut vs 2024 by 2027 | 2050 | net zero target year | Global · company | targets | B | [3] |
| Global ocean-going cruise passengers reached a record 37.2 million in 2025 | 37.2 | million ocean-going passengers | Global · clia-member | 2025 | A | [1] |
| CLIA forecasts ~42 million ocean passengers by 2029 (38.3M 2026F, 40.3M 2027F, 41.2M 2028F, 42.1M 2029F) | 42.1 | million passengers (forecast) | Global · clia-member | 2029F | A | [6] |
| USA supplies 86.7% of Caribbean cruisers, 20.2% of Mediterranean; Germany 45.7% of Non-Med Europe | 86.7 | % of Caribbean passengers sourced from USA | Caribbean / Europe · clia-member | 2025 | A | [6] |
| CLIA member fleet: 327 ocean-going ships and 692k lower berths in 2026 = 91% of global ocean-going lower berths | 692000 | lower berths (CLIA members, est. as of June 30 2026) | Global · clia-member | 2026 | A | [6] |
| Cruise tourism generated $198 billion global economic impact in 2024, supporting 1.8 million jobs and $60 billion in wages | 198 | USD billion total economic impact | Global · clia-member | 2024 | A | [1] |
| U.S. cruise economic impact $75 billion in 2024, 333,000 jobs, >$25B wages, $41.4B GDP | 75 | USD billion US economic impact | United States · clia-member | 2024 | A | [1] |
| Of 37.2M cruisers in 2025, 20.5M sailed on typically U.S.-embarked cruises | 20.5 | million passengers on US-embarked cruises | United States · clia-member | 2025 | A | [6] |
| Prior edition: $168 billion global economic impact in 2023 (record at the time); 56 new CLIA ocean ships on order 2025-2036 ($56.8B) | 168 | USD billion total economic impact | Global · clia-member | 2023 | A | [8] |
| More than 61% of CLIA fleet able to connect to onshore power, rising to 72% by 2028 (2025 edition) | 61 | % of CLIA fleet shore-power capable | Global · clia-member | 2025 (2028 target 72%) | A | [8] |
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Sources
The ledger.
- Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) via PR Newswire. Cruise Industry Sees Strong Demand as Global Impact Expands and Investments in Efficiency and Future Fuels Continue (CLIA release, 2026 SOCI). Accessed 2026-10-14. prnewswire.com/news-releases/cruise-industry-sees-strong-demand-as-global-impact-expands-a
- Carnival Corporation & plc (SEC EDGAR). Carnival Corporation & plc Form 10-K FY2025 (filed 2026-01-27). Accessed 2026-10-14. sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/815097/000081509726000007/ccl-20251130.htm
- Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (SEC EDGAR). Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. Form 10-K FY2025 (filed 2026-02-11). Accessed 2026-10-14. sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/884887/000088488726000007/rcl-20251231.htm
- Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (SEC EDGAR). Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. Form 10-K FY2025 (filed 2026-03-02). Accessed 2026-10-14. sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1513761/000110465926022067/nclh-20251231x10k.htm
- Viking Holdings Ltd (SEC EDGAR). Viking Holdings Ltd Form 20-F for year ended December 31, 2025 (filed 2026-03-03). Accessed 2026-10-14. sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1745201/000174520126000007/vik-20251231.htm
- Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA). CLIA 2026 State of the Cruise Industry (presentation PDF). Accessed 2026-10-14. cruising.org/sites/default/files/2026-04/2026%20State%20of%20the%20Cruise%20Industry%20Pre
- US CDC (National Center for Environmental Health). About Vessel Sanitation Program. Accessed 2026-10-14. cdc.gov/vessel-sanitation/about/index.html
- Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) via PR Newswire. New 2025 State of the Cruise Industry Report ... (CLIA release). Accessed 2026-10-14. prnewswire.com/news-releases/new-2025-state-of-the-cruise-industry-report-shows-cruising-i
- European Commission (DG CLIMA). Reducing emissions from the shipping sector. Accessed 2026-10-14. climate.ec.europa.eu/eu-action/transport-decarbonisation/reducing-emissions-shipping-secto
This page is analysis for general information, not investment advice. Hawkes & Kwortnik has no commercial relationship with the operators named here. Company figures are each company's own definitions and are not reconciled across companies.