Onboard revenue generated on Norwegian Jade’s restart sailing exceeded levels on a similar voyage on the same ship in 2019 by “more than 50%”.
Norwegian Jade was the first ship in Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings’ 28-ship fleet to resume operations when it sailed out of Athens late last month.
The firm, which operates Norwegian Cruise Line, Regent Seven Seas Cruises and Oceania Cruises, said 2019 was record-breaking based on metrics including bookings and onboard revenue.
However, Frank Del Rio (pictured), president and chief executive of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, told a second quarter results call: “Our great cruise comeback officially commenced last week when Norwegian Jade operated Greek Isles voyages out of Athens.
“The relaunch went off without a hitch. Our onboard revenue on this first cruise significantly exceeded our target which was focused on 2019 results by over 50%.”
More: NCLH reports ‘unparalleled’ pent-up demand despite Q2 losses
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Mark A. Kempa, executive vice president and chief financial officer at NCLH, later went into detail about how passengers had spent on board the 2,402-passenger vessel.
He explained: “When you look at the spending trends of it, it was your normal areas – shore excursions was very intense, food and beverage, and casinos. It’s great to see these trends that we’re used to and customers are willing to spend.
“While it is early, it’s certainly very encouraging.”
Del Rio added that around 80% of passengers on Norwegian Jade’s first two restart sailings have been sourced from markets outside the US.
“Typically, for a cruise on Norwegian [Cruise Line] in Europe, roughly half the customers are from the US and half are from the rest of the world,” Del Rio said.
“On Jade’s first two Greek Isles cruises out of Athens, we have seen that number jump to 80%. So many Americans have not been able to go overseas for such a long period time that the pent-up demand we’re seeing for cruises overall is higher indexed by Americans wanting this long-haul travel plans to places like Greece.
“We don’t think that this [percentage] is sustainable in the long term as pent-up demand is burnt off but it’s good to see that we’ve got the marketing strength and sales platforms throughout the world to fill our ships.
“We’re seeing strong demand across the board.”
NCLH will have 20% more ship capacity by the end of 2023. “We’re very much looking forward to take delivery of these vessels over the next few years,” Del Rio said. “Four of them come online in 2022 and 2023.”
Norwegian Prima – the debut ship in Norwegian Cruise Line’s Prima class – is set to launch next summer. A Prima-class vessel will launch every year until 2027.
Del Rio added that before the Covid-19 pandemic brought cruise operations to a standstill, NCLH was “hitting on all cylinders”.
“We’re very much bullish on the future,” Del Rio said.