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☆ Everyone you know is going on a cruise
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-27 | by ( Harriet Baskas | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Benjamin Xiang, a San Francisco-based flight attendant, went on his first cruise last August, setting aside his reservations about "cruise people" and a type of trip he'd imagined would be "not my travel style." He's among the many cruise newbies who've helped power the industry's recent growth. Some 27% of cruise passengers over the past two years have been first-timers, up 12% from the prior two-year period, according to the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), a trade group. That's exactly what cruise operators are hoping for, and so far they're getting it: 82% of all cruisers say they'll book again, CLIA's latest report found. After welcoming 31.7 million passengers last year, 7% more than in 2019, the industry expects volumes to swell to 34.7 million by the end of 2024.

Persons: Benjamin Xiang, he'd, Xiang, who've, Will, CLIA's, Jennifer Klaussen Organizations: Voyages, Cruise Lines International Association, Sundari Locations: San Francisco, Barcelona, Mallorca, Ibiza, Malibu , California

☆ Icon of the Seas: Why Americans Are Obsessed With Big Cruise Ships
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-25 | by ( Henry Wismayer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +17 min

Love them or loathe them, giant cruise ships are among the most remarkable success stories of the mass tourism age. Rechristened the Mardi Gras, the first Carnival cruise ship sailed out of Miami that March. Cruise ships like the Icon of the Seas will spend the majority of their trip at sea. Eight years later, cruise ships such as the Diamond Princess became early incubators for COVID-19. Cruise Market Watch forecasts there will be 360 cruise ships in service at the end of this year, comprising less than 1% of the global commercial fleet.

Persons: Ted Arison, Arison, Pieter De Boer, Costa, Diamond, Aaron Saunders, We've, Sue Bryant, Z, sass, Emma Le Teace, YouTuber, David Foster Wallace, Harper's, Sarah Knorr, Bryan Comer, Karla Hart, Hart, Saunders, it's, Henry Wismayer Organizations: Port, Passengers, Mardi Gras, Mardi, Gras, Cruise, Royal Caribbean, Costa Concordia, Cruise Lines International Association, Broadway, CivicScience, Royal, Virgin, Business, Transport & Environment, Getty, International Council, Global Cruise, Global Cruise Activist Network, Cruise Market, Royal Caribbean International, New York Times, National Geographic, Financial Times Locations: Port of Miami, Caribbean, Miami, The Port, Tuscany, Italy, Royal Caribbean, TikTok, Panama, Bahamas, Brussels, Netherlands, Douarnenez, Venice, Dubrovnik, Croatia, Amsterdam, Juneau , Alaska, Skagway , Alaska, CocoCay, London

Travelers are looking to cruises in 2024 because they are still cheaper than land-based alternatives. With occupancy levels approaching pre-pandemic levels, operators plan to hike prices in coming months. "Overall the market is extremely strong, especially the top end of the market in terms of the most high-end luxury cruises," said Bob Levinstein, CEO of cruise marketplace Cruise Compete. Even as travelers have canceled or postponed planned vacations to the Middle East, cruise bookings will still hit record levels in 2024, said Truist Securities analyst Patrick Scholes. Prior to the Oct. 7 attacks in Israel, industry-wide bookings for 2024 were about 25% higher than in 2019 for bookings in 2020.

Persons: Queen Mary, Andrew Kelly, Bob Levinstein, Patrick Scholes, Scholes, Jason Liberty, Josh Weinstein, Atle, Kari Dillon, Dillon, InteleTravel, Dave Spinelli, Ben Harrell, Granth, Marguerita Choy Organizations: Cunard Line, Carnival Corporation & plc, Brooklyn Cruise, REUTERS, Travelers, Truist Securities, Cruise Lines International Association, Royal Caribbean, Liberty ., Holdings, Cruisers, Thomson Locations: Brooklyn, Brooklyn , New York City, U.S, BENGALURU, Israel, Caribbean, Oslo, North Carolina, Florida, InteleTravel, Delray Beach , Florida, Royal Caribbean, Bengaluru, Doyinsola, New York

☆ China kicks off its plan to take on the cruise industry: 'There's no turning back'
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-30 | by ( Hannah Towey | Brittany Chang | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

After a three-year hiatus, international cruise lines can resume sailings from China. AdvertisementAdvertisementRoyal Caribbean's Wonder of the Seas, once the world's largest cruise ship, was originally scheduled for year-round sailing from China. Then COVID-19 shut down the cruise industry and China blocked sailings from international cruise lines. Now, after a three-year hiatus, international cruise lines can resume sailings from China. Enter the Adora Magic City, the first Chinese-built and operated cruise ship.

Persons: —, Kun Cao, Reddal, James D, Morgan China, Cao, Joel Katz, Asia —, Michael Bayley, Bayley, Yang Guobing, Andy Stuart, Skift, it's Organizations: Service, Seas, Royal Caribbean, Magic City, Cruise, Royal Caribbean International, China China's, China State Shipbuilding Corporation, Carnival Corporation, Publishing, Getty Images, Viking Cruises, China Merchants Group, Royal, MSC, CSSC Carnival Cruise Shipping, Xinhua, Getty, Cruise Line, Global Times Locations: China, Shanghai, Fort Lauderdale , Florida, Southern, Magic, Caribbean, Asia, Australasia, CLIA, United States, Miami, Switzerland, Royal Caribbean, —, Norwegian, Alaska

☆ 6 cruise passengers have gone overboard in 3 months. Here's why most ships still don't use detection tech for rescues.
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-31 | by ( Hannah Towey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +18 min

An average of 19 people go overboard on cruise ships every year, industry data has found. Less than two months after Peale fell overboard, 30-year-old Jaylen Hill also went overboard a Carnival cruise ship. In total, at least five passengers have gone overboard cruise ships this summer, including Hill. The incidents occurred on the cruise ships Carnival Elation, Spectrum of the Seas, Emerald Princess, Mariner of the Seas, and Wonder of the Seas. A Coast Guard spokesperson said there are no regulations preventing cruise lines from installing MOB detection systems on their vessels.

Persons: Ronnie Peale Jr, Peale, Linda Peale, —, Travis Heggie, Hill, Eric Rodriguez, Princess, Joe Perez, Ross Klein, Paul McConnell, Jamie Barnett, James Michael Grimes, Grimes, CLIA, it's, Mike Collier, MOBtronic, Sen, Richard Blumenthal, Collier, Blumenthal, Linda Peale Jennilyn Blosser, Blosser, didn't, Barnett, Jim Walker Organizations: US Coast Guard, Carnival, Coast Guard, Bowling Green State University, Cruise Lines International Association, Jacksonville , Florida . U.S . Coast, Washington Post, Carnival Corporation, U.S . Coast Guard, Getty, Cruise Vessel Security, Safety, Guard, International Cruise Victims Association, Line International Association, USA, Royal Caribbean, International, Organization Locations: Virginia's Shenandoah, Connecticut, Hill, Jacksonville , Florida . U.S, Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, MOBtronic

☆ A passenger went overboard Royal Caribbean's Wonder of the Seas, the largest operating cruise ship in the world at 18 decks tall and 230,000 tons
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( Erin Snodgrass | Hannah Towey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A passenger went overboard the massive Wonder of the Seas cruise ship on Tuesday near Cuba. The Royal Caribbean ship is the largest passenger cruise ship currently in service. AdvertisementAdvertisementA passenger went overboard the largest cruise ship in the world on Tuesday, a Royal Caribbean spokesperson confirmed to Insider. The 230,000-ton cruise ship was two days into its seven-day itinerary after it left Port Canaveral, Florida, on Sunday. Overboard incidentsThis is at least the sixth person to go overboard a cruise ship in the past three months.

Persons: Princess, Travis Heggie, CLIA Organizations: Royal, Coast Guard, Morning, Fox, Passengers, Facebook, Royal Caribbean, US Coast Guard, South, Cuban Border Guard, Hurricane Idalia, Cruise, Bowling Green State University, Cruise Lines International Association Locations: Cuba, Royal Caribbean, Miami, South Florida, Port Canaveral , Florida, Florida

☆ 4 people have gone overboard on cruise ships this summer. Here's why most cruise lines don't use technology that could've helped save them.
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( Hannah Towey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +18 min

An average of 19 people go overboard on cruise ships every year, industry data has found. At 6:36 p.m. — more than 12 hours after Peale fell overboard — Carnival contacted the Coast Guard, according to the agency. Less than two months after Peale fell overboard, 30-year-old Jaylen Hill also went overboard a Carnival cruise ship. Legislation without regulationThe US Coast Guard does not check for man-overboard image capture or detection technology during compliance inspections of cruise ships. A Coast Guard spokesperson said there are no regulations preventing cruise lines from installing MOB detection systems on their vessels.

Persons: Ronnie Peale Jr, Peale, Linda Peale, —, Travis Heggie, Hill, Eric Rodriguez, Joe Perez, Ross Klein, Paul McConnell, Jamie Barnett, James Michael Grimes, Grimes, CLIA, it's, Mike Collier, MOBtronic, Sen, Richard Blumenthal, Collier, Blumenthal, Linda Peale Jennilyn Blosser, Blosser, didn't, Barnett, Jim Walker Organizations: US Coast Guard, Carnival, Coast Guard, Bowling Green State University, Cruise Lines International Association, Royal Caribbean's, Princess Cruises, Jacksonville , Florida . U.S . Coast, Washington Post, Carnival Corporation, U.S . Coast Guard, Getty, Cruise Vessel Security, Safety, Guard, International Cruise Victims Association, Line International Association, USA, Royal Caribbean, International, Organization Locations: Virginia's Shenandoah, Connecticut, Jacksonville , Florida . U.S, Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, MOBtronic

☆ Are Cruises ‘Corny’? Some First-Time Passengers Looking for a Deal Say Maybe Not.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( Ceylan Yeginsu | More About Ceylan Yeginsu | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

It wasn’t just the horror stories about passengers stuck on cruise ships during the pandemic (though that was part of it). “I always thought of cruises as corny vacations for the elderly,” said Mr. Brown, 32, a member of the logistics team at the New York streetwear company Supreme. “You get to see all these different places and can take day trips without having to lug your baggage around,” Mr. Brown said. Out of the 4,500 respondents who took their first cruise, 88 percent of millennials and 86 percent of Gen X said they would do it again, according to CLIA. The association projects cruise tourism to reach 106 percent of 2019 passenger volume in 2023.

Persons: Holden Brown, “, ”, Brown, Genevieve, ” Mr, Gen X Organizations: Norwegian Prima, Cruise Lines International Association Locations: York, Norwegian, Barcelona, Rome, Florence, Italy, Valencia, Ibiza, Spain, Cannes, France, millennials

☆ Authorities search for Australian man who went overboard a Royal Caribbean cruise ship as the boat crossed the Pacific in the dark
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Erin Snodgrass | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The Coast Guard is searching for a man believed to have gone overboard a cruise ship this week. Insider previously reported that man overboard incidents are relatively rare. The US Coast Guard is still searching for an Australian passenger believed to have gone overboard a Royal Caribbean cruise ship hundreds of miles from Hawaii on Tuesday night. Officials first received a call from the Quantum of the Seas cruise ship about a man overboard at 11:03 p.m. on Tuesday. The search for the overboard man resumed Wednesday morning as a Coast Guard helicopter conducted a six-hour aerial search in the area, but failed to locate the missing man.

☆ See the 25-slide pitch deck a Baltimore biotech used to raise $56 million to develop a blood test that detects recurring cancer
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Andrew Dunn | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A Baltimore-based biotech startup has raised $56 million to develop a cancer blood test. Haystack Oncology has raised $56 million in a Series A round to continue development of its cancer blood test in 2023, the startup said Wednesday. The Baltimore-based biotech says it has a blood test that can find tiny, lingering traces of cancer in patients who've already had cancer and received treatment. Those cancerous cells shed small pieces of their DNA into the bloodstream, and Haystack's test detects those molecules. Haystack's blood test, called a liquid biopsy, can find signs of cancer that aren't detectable by imaging like CT scans.

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