Cruises: Smaller boats and luxury destinations

After two years of devastating losses and a tentative restart last June, the cruise industry has faced a challenging start to 2022, as the highly transmissible omicron variant of the coronavirus caused cases to surge onboard ships, forcing some cruise lines to cancel voyages and change itineraries.

But demand for future cruises is still high, especially among dedicated cruise fans. A recent survey on cruiser sentiment by online review site Cruise Critic found that 52% of the 6,400 cruisers surveyed were currently looking to book a cruise, with 40% hoping to set sail in the next six months.

A 2022 report on the outlook for the industry, published in January by the Cruise Lines International Association, the industry’s trade group, highlighted how major companies are bouncing back from the pandemic despite recent hurdles.

More than 75% of CLIA member ships have returned to service, with 100% expected to restart operations by August. Additionally, 16 new cruise ships from major lines like Carnival, MSC, Royal Caribbean and Disney will launch in 2022.

One of the biggest cruise trends for 2022 is luxury expedition voyages, appealing to a growing number of travelers throughout the pandemic because they typically sail on smaller ships and steer away from crowded destinations.

“The itineraries vary pretty significantly from those of the larger, more mainstream lines,” said Colleen Mcdaniel, editor-in-chief of Cruise Critic. “Due to their size, luxury ships are able to sail to more remote destinations — so even if you’re sailing in the Caribbean, your ports of call will likely be further removed from the masses, and likely somewhere you might have never been before.”

Smaller river and expedition cruises are also expected to become more popular this year as cruisers seek out big bucket-list destinations and more sustainable ways to travel. Responding to the demand, Hurtigruten, a Norwegian line that specializes in expedition cruises, has added new itineraries to its Galápagos Islands excursions, offering a range of small-ship carbon-neutral expedition sailings that will cover the full span of the remote 19-island archipelago.