Cruise boom 2024: Record numbers and new trends for sea adventures!

Cruise boom 2024: Record numbers and new trends for sea adventures!

Karibik, Keine Angabe - In 2024, the world's growing cruise industry recorded a remarkable upswing. According to gloobi.de , 34.6 million passengers enjoyed a vacation at sea, which corresponds to an increase of 9 % compared to the previous year. The industry for the first time exceeds the number of passengers before pandemic. In addition, an increase to over 42 million cruise guests worldwide will be forecast by 2028.

North America remains by far the largest market for cruises with 20.2 million passengers, followed by Europe with 8.4 million. In Germany, the number of cruise guests rose to around 2.6 million in 2024, also a positive sign for the domestic industry.

growth and trends

The most popular target regions remained the Caribbean, the western Mediterranean and the North and Baltic Sea. A growing interest increasingly also applies to the routes in Asia and combined trips between Europe and the Middle East. The industry is optimistic because 82 % of the passengers plan to take another cruise in the coming years. Almost a quarter of the guests even travel several times a year.

An insightful detail is that 36 % of travelers are under 40 years old. With an average age of 46.5 years, the relevance of youngerers also becomes clear, since 31 % of passengers went on cruise for the first time in 2024 - a historically high value.

flourishing cruise fleet and sustainability

The fleet in the field of right -wing cruises is expected to increase to 310 ships by 2028, with more than 650,000 passenger beds available. The focus of the shipping companies is increasingly shifted to medium -sized ships with capacities of up to 3,000 passengers, while only 30 % of the ships are megaliners. At the same time, there is a clear tendency towards sustainable practices, as the report by the Cruise Lines International Association (Clia) shows. This organization regularly publishes reports on the status of the industry, which deals not only with passenger volumes, but also with trends and sustainability efforts.

according to cruisingjournal.com reached the passenger volume in 2023 a total of 6.8 % in Compared to 2019. These figures illustrate the ongoing growth and the increasing popularity of cruises, not least, since 82 % of the participants are already considering another cruise vacation.

The industry is dynamic and is expected to come up with seven new cruise ships in 2024 and a continuing demand for cruises. Millennials in particular show great interest, with 22 % of them planning another cruise. Innovative travel offers such as expedition cruises recorded an increase of 71 %from 2019 to 2023 In summary, the cruise industry not only shows a strong comeback after the Covid 19 pandemic, but also strives for a sustainable and future-oriented growth course that appeals to both older and younger travelers.