摘要: |
The past few years since the COVID-19 lockdowns have been rough ones for the passenger cruising industry, but as a story in this issue notes, a recovery is underway. Most surveys of passenger cruising forecast numbers either just below those of 2019, or slightly ahead of them. While demand is up for all categories of blue- and brown-water cruising, in North America, demand for Mississippi River cruises leads the way, according to one market study. Most encouraging was an analysis from Grand View Research, which valued the U.S. river cruise market size at $95.4 million in 2022, and said it is expected to grow at a compound growth rate of 20.8 percent from 2023 to 2030. Previous reports have focused on baby boomer retirees as a key market for cruising. If rising demand for cruising is anything to judge by, their retirement nest eggs must not be too dented by inflation and rising energy prices. |