Royal Caribbean in July launched Utopia of the Seas, a ship designed for three-night weekends and four-night weekday getaways. Earlier this month, the Miami-based company unveiled plans to build a private destination in Mexico.
More broadly, the cruise industry has rebounded steadily after taking a significant hit during the pandemic. Roughly 35.7 million travelers are expected to set sail during 2024, up 6% from 2019, according to industry trade group Cruise Lines International Association.
Royal Caribbean had U.S. measured media spending of $81 million for the first two quarters of 2024, compared to $143 million in all of 2023, according to figures from Vivvix, which includes paid social data from Pathmatics.
The Royal Caribbean cruise line accounted for the lion’s share (70%) of parent company Royal Caribbean Group’s 2023 U.S. measured-media ad spending. Other brands in the group’s portfolio include Celebrity Cruises, a premium cruise line, and Silversea Cruises, an ultra-luxury and expedition cruise line.
Royal Caribbean is the latest cruise line set to make an agency change. Earlier this year, Carnival Cruise Line appointed Omnicom’s TBWA\Chiat\Day New York as its creative agency of record. Last year, Princess Cruises brought on Terri & Sandy. In 2022, Holland America hired Curiosity. (Carnival Cruise Line, Holland America and Princess Cruises are all owned by Carnival Corp.)