The company, which owns Royal Caribbean, Celebrity Cruises and Silversea, said two-thirds of its ships – 40 in total – were now back in operation, despite a “dip” in bookings due to the outbreak of the Delta variant of Covid-19.
The group, which also includes a joint venture that operates German lines Tui Cruises and Hapag-Lloyd Cruises, said it had carried 500,000 guests since the resumption of cruises, with this number set to surpass one million by the end of the year.
It added that 50 of 61 ships will be back in service by the end of 2021 – representing around 80% of the group’s total capacity.
Richard Fain, the group’s chief executive, said: “We want to show, in a tangible way, the safety and simplicity of cruising. Our strategy continues to focus on getting the flywheel spinning smooth and fast, so that as we turn the year, we will enjoy a stable and predictable platform with which to start the wave period.”
The group said bookings for 2022 sailings were “within historical ranges”, with prices above 2019 levels, even when the impact of future cruise credits are taken into account.
Despite the return to service of two-thirds of the company’s ships, Royal Caribbean Group still made a net loss of $1.4 billion for the third quarter of the year.
The company said it had been “thoughtfully returning ships into operations at reduced load factors and slowly building to ensure health and safety, a world-class guest experience and financial prudence”.
Load factors between July and September on its “core itineraries” in the Caribbean, Alaska and Europe were 44%, but this is expected to rise to 65-70% in the final three months of 2021.
Bookings picked up “strongly” in September for the group, with sales of 2022 itineraries rising by more than 60% on the average monthly total between April and June.
Chief financial officer Jason Liberty added: “As cases have come down, demand has come surging back. Consumers are showing their resilience and desire to vacation, and the growing affinity of Royal Caribbean’s leading brands, ships and crew.
“Although there are many uncertainties going forward regarding Covid-19, as well as cost and supply chain pressures, we continue our pathway forward and anticipate positive cash flow for the group by spring of 2022 and generating positive earnings for the full year 2022.”
The group’s remaining ships are expected to return to service by spring 2022, including the restart of trips from mainland China.
