Global guest volume expected to approach nearly 40m by 2027
Benefiting from the speedy recovery of China's cruise industry, both domestic and international cruise operators are actively positioning themselves for home port operations and offering diversified and creative services in the world's second-largest economy, according to senior executives of cruise companies.
"It is expected that China's home ports handled more than 2 million passengers trips throughout 2024.The active recovery and rapid growth are expected to confirm China as Asia's largest cruise market," said Qiu Ling, chairman and deputy director of the Shanghai International Cruise Business Institute.
Speedy recovery
"The year of 2024 was the first year for China to resume cruises and home port operations after the pandemic. Cruises have quickly become a highly sought-after choice of Chinese consumers who love international travel," said Qiu.
According to Qiu, the Chinese cruise industry celebrated the inaugural voyage of the country's first domestically-made large cruise ship Adora Magic City on the first day of 2024, and was cheered up by the return of big-name international cruise brands' flagship cruises. Major Chinese home ports including the Shanghai Wusongkou International Cruise Port reported significant growth in both cruise ships and passengers.
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Benjamin Bouldin, president of Royal Caribbean International China, said 2024 was an exceptional year for Royal Caribbean.
"Since April, the Spectrum of the Seas has successfully operated 51 sailings, welcoming over 250,000 guests with a high load factor. This performance reflects not only the strong recovery of China's cruise industry, but also the growing demand among Chinese consumers for high-quality travel experiences," said Bouldin.
Notably, in peak travel seasons such as during the May Day holiday, Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holiday, all sailings were fully booked a month in advance, according to Bouldin.
"These results exceeded our expectations and demonstrated the resilience and enthusiasm of the Chinese market. Our success in 2024 lays a solid foundation for continued growth and reinforces our commitment to providing unforgettable cruise experiences for our guests in China," he said.
Last year also saw Switzerland-headquartered MSC Cruises completely recommence operations in the Chinese market.
"As the first international cruise line to depart from home ports in the Chinese mainland after the pandemic, we deployed MSC Bellissima, the flagship of the Asian market with a gross tonnage of 172,000, to Shanghai and Shenzhen home ports, allowing guests in East and South China regions to have the opportunity to board an international cruise ship on the home front," said Huang Ruiling, president of MSC Cruises China.
"She successfully completed 25 near full capacity voyages, taking more than 100,000 guests to enjoy high-quality European-style luxury cruise vacations during peak travel seasons in winter and summer,"Huang said.
According to Huang, by implementing a strategy of market segmentation and leveraging the peak seasons in different areas, MSC Cruises received positive feedback from consumers.
While international cruise operators ended 2024 with exceptional performance, the advent of Adora Magic City, the nation's first domestically built cruise ship, also closed its first-year with a strong performance in the post-pandemic era.
"Since its maiden commercial voyage on the first day of 2024, Adora Magic City has successfully completed 87 trips as of Jan 15 and served over 300,000 guests from both home and abroad," said Chen Ranfeng, chief executive officer of Adora Cruises, operator of Adora Magic City.
"The majority of our guests are Chinese, and about 5 percent of them are international guests in each sailing. Feedback from our guests shows that the satisfaction rate stands above 95 percent," Chen said.
Looking ahead
Encouraged by the strong market recovery and promising outlook, cruise operators are investing in the China market with diversified and tailored offerings this year.
Adora Cruises will continue to explore the Chinese market via a wider range of cruise routes. "The two cruise ships, Adora Magic City and Adora Mediterranea, will operate nearly 170 international cruise routes for both domestic and foreign guests throughout 2025, meeting the diversified travel needs of consumers," Chen said.
Adora Magic City is scheduled to make Shanghai its major home port in 2025 and launch more than 80 sailings lasting from 4 to 7 nights. According to cruise itineraries, the vessel will take guests to an array of destinations in Japan and South Korea this year.
Adora Mediterranea, another cruise ship in operation under Adora Cruises, will leverage the advantage of multiple home ports including Tianjin, Guangzhou of Guangdong province, Xiamen of Fujian province, Qingdao of Shandong province and Dalian of Liaoning province. In its two to five nights of sailings, it will take tourists to popular destinations like Japan, South Korea, Vietnam and the Philippines.
For Royal Caribbean, the Spectrum of the Seas will continue its year-round deployment in Shanghai and Hong Kong in 2025, offering a variety of itineraries that cater to diverse preferences. Guests can choose from short 3-night weekend cruises to immersive 8-night explorations, visiting nearly 20 destinations, including Tokyo, Osaka, Hokkaido, Fukuoka, Nagasaki, Okinawa, Jeju Island, Busan and Nha Trang.
According to Bouldin, Royal Caribbean has curated over 100 premium shore excursions that combine classic attractions with innovative experiences, including whale watching and helicopter tours, in order to ensure that guests can enjoy both thrilling adventures and deep cultural immersion.
"By providing such diverse options, we aim to meet the evolving needs of Chinese travelers while continuing to inspire confidence in the market," said Bouldin.
Deeming China as one of its key strategic markets, MSC Cruises is expected to make steady progress this year with its brand heritage and global capacity deployment set to meet the diverse needs of Chinese guests, according to Huang.
"On Jan 16, we marked the grand return of MSC Bellissima as she brought a total of 25 voyages throughout this year covering the winter and spring season from January to March and the summer season from July to September, taking guests to popular Japanese and Korean destinations including Fukuoka, Sasebo, Kagoshima, Okinawa, Jeju, Busan and Incheon," said Huang.
Additionally, with more Chinese guests choosing our overseas itineraries to enjoy cruise vacations in Europe, the Middle East and other regions, we have announced 127 specially selected 2025-26 overseas cruises in China, covering a total of 8 regions and over 30 countries and territories, offering more global travel options, Huang said.
Strong market drivers
The Chinese cruise market's strong comeback in 2024 and rosy outlook for 2025 is driving the global cruise market's growth and expansion.
In its 2024 State of the Cruise Industry report, the Cruise Lines International Association said that global cruise passenger volume reached 31.7 million in 2023, surpassing 2019 by 7 percent. It projected the cruise tourism market globally to rebound to 34.7 million in 2024, and approach nearly 40 million by 2027. The report also forecast cruise capacity to grow at least 10 percent from 2024 through 2028.
"We will continue to invest in the Chinese market, bringing innovation and delivering high-quality offerings to promote the prosperous development of the Chinese cruise market," said Huang.
"Meanwhile, we will continue to innovate, bringing more offerings that integrate cruise travel with other tourism segments, entertainment and culture. This includes developing popular cross-border collaborations and launching cultural and tourism integration projects, such as Chinese culture-themed and festival-themed voyages. Our aim is to offer consumers more diverse and personalized experiences, catering to the ever-changing market demand,"Huang explained.
Huang said MSC Cruises is confident that the Chinese cruise market is full of potential as the overall travel willingness of Chinese consumers is improving, policy support and infrastructure improvements have provided strong guarantees for the development of the Chinese cruise market, and the joint and active promotion of cruise culture throughout the cruise value chain is ongoing.
"We are optimistic about the long-term growth of China's cruise market. With the steady recovery of outbound tourism and the expanding middle-income group, the demand for premium travel experiences continues to rise," said Bouldin.
According to Bouldin, Royal Caribbean has observed notable shifts in Chinese consumer behavior. Travelers are increasingly prioritizing quality and unique experiences over cost, with balcony and ocean-view staterooms now among the most sought-after accommodation. This evolution reflects the growing sophistication of Chinese travelers and perfectly aligns with Royal Caribbean's premium offerings.
"From an industry perspective, Chinese guests traveling on international cruises play a crucial role in strengthening global connections and elevating China's profile within the global cruise industry. This dynamic not only encourages the development of tailored offerings for Chinese consumers but also enriches the international perception of China through cruising," said Bouldin.
"The cruise economy is an industry with unlimited outlook that is deeply integrated with advanced manufacturing and modern service industry," Zhang Weijiong, vice-president of the China Europe International Business School was quoted as saying by China Times.
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"Along with the country's visa-free policies, the entire cruise industry is gradually entering the fast lane. In the medium- to long-term, China's cruise market is expected to reach a passenger volume of 14 million passenger trips, and the nation's cruise market scale may exceed 500 billion yuan by 2035," Zhang said.
"Following the commercial operation of China's domestically built cruise ships, Chinese travelers and the local market will embrace more options," Chen said.
"We take advantage of our proximity to the market and a deeper understanding of Chinese consumers, which also makes us competitive in the global cruise industry," said Chen.
Committed to integrating the essence of Chinese culture into the brand experience, Adora Cruises vows to provide an innovative cultural tourism experience for passengers, offering cruise products tailored for Chinese people, and exploring a Chinese paradigm for the global cruise industry.
"In the future, we will continue to develop and optimize cruise products that better understand Chinese people, and create a unique cruise innovation experience in multiple dimensions," said Chen.
"China's status as the world's largest emerging market for the cruise industry as well as the world's second-largest cruise market is unshakable. China remains the world's largest and most promising consumption market, which contains huge growth potential," Qiu said.
With regards to China's supportive measures, continued opening-up and growing appeal of the China market for cruise companies, the Chinese cruise market is expected to experience positive and long lasting growth," Qiu said.
