Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings reported outstanding financial results for the second quarter of 2024, following its April announcement of a massive fleet expansion.
The company watched its future bookings take off following the announcement, with the company’s advance ticket sales reaching a record high of $3.9 billion. This figure is approximately 11 percent higher than the same period in 2023.
The company reported the news and its record financial results in its latest report, released today, July 31, 2024. It showed the company achieving an 8 percent year-over-year increase in revenue for a record total of $2.4 billion.
The impressive results prompted the company to raise its full-year 2024 earnings plan to 8.2 percent, up from 7.2 percent. It’s the third time Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings has updated and increased its 2024 projections.
“2024 continues to be an exceptional year in terms of our financial performance, as evidenced by our strong second-quarter results, which exceeded guidance across the board,” said Harry Sommer, president and CEO of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings.
As of June 30, the company, which owns and operates Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL), Oceania Cruises, and Regent Seven Seas Cruises, experienced occupancy rates of nearly 106 percent for the quarter.
Sommer said the expected earnings per share growth to reach 120 percent over 2023, “driven mainly by our ability to capitalize on the robust market demand and ensuring our guests are vacationing better and experiencing more across our brands.”
A Fleet Expansion and Bright Future
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings’ numbers reflect its ambitious strategy to increase its fleet across all three brands. In April 2024, revealed plans to bring eight new ships across its lines by 2036, spurring an increase in future bookings.
Norwegian Cruise Line will begin its massive expansion next year when Norwegian Aqua, the third ship in the Prima class, joins the fleet. Currently under construction at Fincantieri shipyard in Italy, the 142,500-gross-ton ship will take 3,100 passengers to destinations across the Caribbean from its home in Port Canaveral and PortMiami.
By 2028, NCL will add a fourth Prima class ship and, pending financing, has plans to introduce four additional 5,000-passenger ships between 2030 and 2036.
For Oceania Cruises, Allura will also arrive in 2025 and serve as the cruise line’s final Allura Class vessel. The 67,000-gross-ton ship is expected to be delivered by Fincantieri and enter service on July 18, 2025.
The 1,200-passenger Allura will homeport in Civitavecchia (Rome), Italy, and sail the Mediterranean and Northern Europe in the summer months before crossing the Atlantic. There, it is scheduled to feature a one-of-a-kind 4-day roundtrip culinary voyage from New York City ahead of a fall season in New England and Canada.
Oceania will also welcome two additional ships in 2027 and 2029. The unnamed ships will each carry 1,450 passengers and weigh 86,000 gross tons.
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Finally, two more ships will arrive for Regent Seven Seas Cruises. The two 77,000-gross-ton ships are anticipated for 2026 and 2029.
“This strategic new-ship order across all three of our award-winning brands provides for the steady introduction of cutting-edge vessels into our fleet and solidifies our long-term growth,” said Sommer. “It also allows us to significantly leverage our operating scale.”
Outside of its fleet, the company is also developing a multi-ship pier for Great Stirrup Cay, its private island destination in the Bahamas. The development, expected to be complete in 2025, will cost $150 million and allow the pier to accommodate two of its current and future ships simultaneously.
Norwegian Cruise Line also announced earlier this month that it will begin homeporting its 2,300-passenger Norwegian Jewel in the Port of Philadelphia, opening a new destination to its cruise offerings beginning in 2026. It will be the first cruise ship to sail from Philadelphia since 2011.
