Cruise industry in the United States - statistics & facts

Over the last ten years, the popularity of cruise trips has increased significantly among travelers worldwide. However, while the number of global ocean cruise passengers peaked at nearly 30 million in 2019, the onset of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic drastically changed this scenario. After dropping to under five million due to the impact of the health crisis, the volume of cruise guests worldwide bounced back in 2022 but stayed 31 percent lower than in 2019. Despite not catching up with pre-pandemic levels, North America remained the leading source region for the global cruise industry in 2022, followed by Western Europe and Asia. In particular, most North American cruise travelers come from the United States, the largest global cruise market based on revenue.

Has the U.S. cruise industry recovered from the impact of COVID-19?

The number of cruise passengers sourced from the U.S. reached just under 12 million in 2022, a fivefold increase from 2021 and just around 16 percent below the pre-pandemic peak in cruise guests. With the rebound in the number of cruise travelers, the revenue of the cruise market in the United States also experienced a sharp annual rise in 2022, surpassing nine billion U.S. dollars. That being said, according to Statista Market Insights, the U.S. cruise industry is expected to fully recover from the impact of the health crisis in 2024. Meanwhile, the interest in cruise tourism in the United States grew significantly during the first half of 2023 compared to the previous two years. A June 2023 survey exploring the intention of U.S. travelers to take a cruise trip over the next 12 months revealed that 28 percent of respondents planned a cruise holiday, an increase of 10 percentage points compared to June 2022.

What are the leading U.S. cruise companies?

Several popular cruise companies are headquartered in the United States. According to a June 2022 survey among U.S. consumers, the best rated mega-ship cruise line in the U.S. was Royal Caribbean International. This cruise line is owned by Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd., an American cruise holding company that also operates Celebrity Cruises and Silversea Cruises. In 2022, the revenue of Royal Caribbean Cruises worldwide amounted to approximately nine billion U.S. dollars, denoting a 19 percent drop from 2019. Although Royal Caribbean had around double the revenue of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. - another major cruise line operator based in the United States - it was not the largest cruise company in the U.S. in 2022. That year, the revenue of Carnival Corporation & plc, a British-American cruise operator responsible for a wide range of cruise lines, totaled above 12 billion U.S. dollars. Even though Carnival Corporation recorded a higher figure than its competitors, its revenue fell by 8.7 billion U.S. dollars compared to 2019.
This text provides general information. Statista assumes no liability for the information given being complete or correct. Due to varying update cycles, statistics can display more up-to-date data than referenced in the text.
Published by Statista Research Department, Jul 24, 2023

Key insights

Revenue of the cruise industry in the U.S.
9.3bn USD
Revenue growth of the cruise industry in the U.S.
33%
Number of employees in the cruise line operator industry in the U.S.
15,341
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Editor’s Picks Current statistics on this topic

Number of ocean cruise passengers worldwide from 2019 to 2022, by source region (in 1,000s)

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Number of global ocean cruise passengers 2019-2022, by source market

Number of cruise passengers sourced from the United States from 2016 to 2022 (in 1,000s)

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Number of cruise passengers from the U.S. 2016-2022

Revenue of the cruises market in the United States from 2018 to 2027 (in billion U.S. dollars)

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Revenue of the cruises industry in the U.S. 2018-2027

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