What's New in 2027
Every year around this time, the cruise lines and operators start to tell us what is happening for the year ahead. New ships are named, new destinations are revealed and the industry sets out where it is heading. For 2027, the message is clear: cruising is still growing, and it is building the ships, the destinations and the experiences to keep that going.
So at the Academy, we like to conduct all the key research for you and give you are exclusive preview of the year ahead!
If you have ever thought about a career at sea, this is the moment to pay attention. In this issue I will take you through what is new for 2027, what it means for the people who work in the industry, and why the people who start preparing now will be the ones best placed to join it in what will be a really exciting year!
Key takeaways
2027 is forecast to be another record year. Let's start with the headline. CLIA projects for the first time ever, 40.3 million cruise passengers worldwide will take to the sea in 2027, and AAA projects a fifth straight record for US cruisers (22.4 million).
It is a big year for new ships. There are 15 ships and 27,860 berths due for delivery in 2027, including Hero of the Seas, Norwegian Aura, Carnival Festivale, MSC World Atlantic, Disney Believe and Oceania Sonata.
New destinations are opening. Royal Caribbean's South Pacific beach club in Vanuatu lead a wave of private destinations opening over the next years
Onboard retail is changing. Will new entrants enter the market, will we see new product categories, what skills are needed and how will onboard retailing evolve?
Staffing has recovered, but the pipeline matters. Industry leaders say cruise careers are still under-known and that new, well-prepared entrants are needed for the next wave of ships.
For job seekers, preparation is the advantage. Learning the product and the sales standard before you apply sets you apart.
The year in numbers
Let me start with the figures, because they set the scene and show the amazing growth. According to CLIA, 37.2 million people took an ocean cruise in 2025, up from 34.6 million the year before and 31.7 million the year before that. CLIA's outlook, as reported by ShipUniverse, has that rising to 38.3 million in 2026 and an incredible 40.3 million guests in 2027. The industry is not slowing down, and the guests keep coming back: nearly nine in ten cruisers say they plan to sail again, and now about a third of them are under the age of 40.
To sustain this growth you need the hardware. The pipeline of ships tells the same story. 15 new ships and 27,860 berths (beds) are due for delivery in 2027, and there are now more than 50 ocean-going ships on order through 2036. Behind all of that sits a workforce. CLIA estimates the industry supported 1.8 million jobs worldwide in 2024, which tells you how many people it takes to keep a cruise line running. And why if you are looking for a career at sea, there has never been a better time to learn and then apply!
Expert analysis: what forecasters expect for 2027
Several independent forecasts point the same way, and there are some important details beneath the headlines.
Demand: another record, but growth is normalising
AAA and Tourism Economics project that 22.4 million Americans will cruise in 2027. That is up nearly 4% on 2026, a fifth straight annual record and an extraordinary +57% above the 14 million who cruised in 2019. Whilst the growth is high, it is starting to slow. And with this normalising, pricing and onboard revenue matter more than ever. I think that is good news for anyone whose job is to help guests enjoy spending time and money onboard. This means that retail is of utmost importance to the cruise lines to drive their business forward.
Where guests are going, and for how long
AAA reports that the Caribbean takes 71% of US cruise passengers, with Miami, Port Canaveral and Fort Lauderdale remain the three busiest cruise ports in the world - all in Florida, and all designed to serve Caribbean cruising. Seven nights is still the most popular length, but shorter cruises are gaining ground with more of the top ships continuing to serve the fast growing 3-4 days cruises designed for time poor and first time cruisers: Actually, we can see that 45% of US passengers booked six nights or fewer in 2025, up from 39% in 2019.
Here is my own reading. Shorter cruises mean more embarkation days and more guests to welcome per ship each year, faster onboard sales rhythm, so the pace of onboard selling is only going to rise. If you join in 2027, expect a faster rhythm than your first impression of "a week at sea" suggests. This means that roles such as Retail Ambassadors, Influencers and Hosts become even more important as the need to get passengers in the 'mood to spend' quickly is of top priority!
The new ships of 2027
The year opens with Beachcomber, the third and largest Margaritaville at Sea ship, in January. It has more than 15 new venues and upgraded staterooms, and sails from Miami before moving to Galveston in October. Whilst not technically a new ship (she is the former Costa Fortuna), she is being completely renovated for her flagship launch.
April brings Explora IV from Explora Journeys, a luxury ship with 463 suites, five pools, six restaurants and 12 bars, starting with an eight-night maiden voyage from Genoa to Lisbon. She is the sister ship to Explora III, which debuted in summer 2026, and will grow the Explora Journeys fleet up to 4 luxury ships.
May is a busy month. Amangati, the first ship from the luxury hotel brand Aman, carries just 94 guests in 47 suites, each with its own private terrace. Likely to be the most expensive ultra-luxury yacht, she will continue the trend of the most luxurious hotel brands in the world heading to sea, after recent debut for Ritz-Carlton, Four Seasons and Orient Express.
Norwegian Aura will become the largest ship in the NCL fleet, carrying 3,840 guests, with a new Ocean Heights area and a larger pool deck and The Haven. She is the fifth ship out of 6 in the Prima-class and follows Prima, Aqua, Viva, Luna and will be followed by Bella in 2028. Aura is actually 20% larger than Prima and showcases the evolution of this class over just a few years.
Carnival Festivale, the fourth Excel Class ship (after Mardi Gras, Jubilee, Celebration), arrives with around 6,400 guests, two music zones, a water park and new dining concepts known as The Next Course. In June, Viking Astrea begins its first season in the Mediterranean with 998 guests. She continues the fast expansion of Viking Cruises over the past 10 years with very similar styled luxury ocean ships.
August brings two very different ships. Hero of the Seas, the fourth Icon Class ship for Royal Caribbean, sails from Miami with 5,610 guests, eight neighbourhoods and 28 dining venues. Oceania Sonata, the first of the new Sonata Class and the most spacious ship in the Oceania fleet, introduces La Table, a restaurant for just 18 guests developed with the Maîtres Cuisiniers de France.
The year closes strongly. MSC World Atlantic, the fourth World Class ship (sister to Europa, America and Asia), arrives in November and will continue the strong growth that MSC has delivered into the US cruise market by sailing year-round seven-night Caribbean cruises from Port Canaveral.
In December, Disney Believe, the fourth Wish Class ship, brings up to 4,000 guests on four- and five-night cruises to the Caribbean and Bahamas, and Explora V, an LNG-powered ship, will makes her debut in the Mediterranean.
River cruising is growing too. 2027 will see the launch of Celebrity River Cruises, and makes another cruise brand which is making the leap across the water! 2027 brings new ships from AmaWaterways (AmaRudi, the largest river vessel in Europe), Uniworld (three new Superships), American Cruise Lines, and Viking, which is adding Viking Brahmaputra for India.
Upgrades and innovation
The story of 2027 is not only new hulls. It is a change in what guests expect onboard. Dining has become a headline act, from Carnival's new dining concepts to Oceania's 18-seat La Table, and restaurants are now a reason to choose a ship in the first place. Design is blurring the line between ship and destination: Celebrity's new river ships have cantilevered dining pods and an infinity-edge plunge pool, and Hero of the Seas is built around eight themed neighbourhoods. Explora V is LNG-powered, part of the industry's wider move to lower-emission fuels.
There is also choice at every size. Small, medium and large ships each make up roughly a third of the global fleet, and luxury, expedition and river cruising are all growing. Guests increasingly want immersive time ashore and memorable onboard moments, and that is shaping everything from itineraries to how onboard shops are designed and staffed.
Onboard retail: from shelves to experiences
What will 2027 bring in onboard retail? This is where it gets interesting. 2027 will see a number of exciting and high profile contract changes. Some have already been announced (Starboard - Princess; HFDF - Silversea), some are still to be announced. Lots of changes and operations on all these new ships mean that the industry will be as dynamic and forward looking as ever. Each of the operators (and potentially some new entrants) will be doing their best to optimize their innovation, performance and their teams. The growth in innovative new roles such as Ambassadors, Hosts and Influencers will continue onward. The shift in shorter cruise patterns will increase the importance of retail-tainment as a key performance driver, whilst increasing the level of pop-up and trunk show activations. in product categories, we should continue to see the growth of destination, vintage, luxury and premium brands.
People: staffing has recovered, and the next challenge is the pipeline
CLIA figures put the cruise workforce at nearly 300,000 seafarers, with retention above 80%, compared with around 70% turnover in hospitality. In cruise retail, there will be over 2000 new positions available in 2027. With new ships, new roles and interal succession, the level of vacancies for new joiners has never been higher. It is a great time to join!
What it all adds up to
Reading across all the information, this is how I see 2027 shaping cruise careers. It is our reading of the evidence, not a forecast from any one of them.
More ships and more berths mean new venues and new teams, so there will be more openings in more places. Shorter, more frequent cruises mean more turnaround days and more first-time guests, which is why speed, confidence, communication and a warm welcome matter from day one. Retail is becoming an experience, with tastings, masterclasses, personalisation and pre-loved luxury sitting alongside the products, so hosting and consultative selling count as much as product knowledge. And when 87% of guests say storytelling influences what they buy (Harding+), knowing where a product comes from stops being a nice extra and becomes a commercial skill.
Finally, lines want new, diverse and well-prepared people for the ships on order. In a growing market, preparation is the clearest way to stand out.
What this means if you are looking for a job in cruise retail
If I had to name the skills most likely to set candidates apart in 2027, I would start with product knowledge, especially in watches, jewellery, beauty and fine goods. Next comes consultative, unpressured selling that responds to what a guest is celebrating or looking for, and alongside it the ability to tell the story of a product or a destination so that a guest understands why it matters. Hosting events, from tastings to trunk shows and workshops, is becoming part of the job. So is working confidently with apps, screens and sales data. And underneath all of it sits resilience, empathy and teamwork, because you will be living and working in a multicultural team onboard.
These are the kinds of skills we aim to help you build through the Cruise Retail Diploma and the 80+ free courses we have available in the E-Academy.
Why this is a great time to join
Put the numbers and the new ships together and the picture is simple. Fifteen new ships and close to 28,000 new berths in a single year means new venues to open, new teams to build and new shops to staff. Passenger numbers heading past 40 million mean more guests to serve. And the guests are returning, with nearly nine in ten planning to sail again.
Every one of those ships and destinations is run by people. Behind every new retail space is a shop manager, a team of sales professionals, specialists and ambassadors, and the Talent Hub roles that bring them onboard. As I have said before, there are only around 400 shop managers in the whole industry, and every one of them started with a first contract.
A growing industry opens doors, but it does not remove the need to be ready. New ships and new venues mean more opportunities, and they also bring more people applying for them. The people who stand out are the ones who already understand the product, the standard and the pace of life at sea.
Where the Academy makes the difference
The Cruise Retail Academy exists to close the gap between wanting a career at sea and being ready for one. You can learn the product before you sail: our free learning resource bank and the Cruise Retail Diploma, Level 2 Product Knowledge and Level 3 Sales, help you understand what you will be selling before you ever step onboard. You can see the route ahead through our pathway and the 2026 career roadmap and salary guide, which show the steps from your first contract towards shop manager.
When you are ready, the Talent Hub lets you search roles, see what each one involves and apply, on the website or in the app. And completing the diploma levels gives you something concrete to talk about in an application and an interview, which is a good way to show you are serious.
Why you should start your training now
If you want to join the industry in 2027, the best time to start is now. Not when the vacancy appears, and not once you have applied. Opportunities arrive before the ships do, because new ships and destinations need teams in place ahead of opening, and being ready before the call comes means you can say yes.
Preparation also takes time. Learning a product range and a sales standard is not something to cram in a week, but a few weeks of steady study, starting today, makes a real difference. When two applicants have the same enthusiasm, the one who has already learned the product and completed training goes to the top of the pile. And the people who arrive prepared are the ones who sell with confidence, enjoy the first contract and get noticed for what comes next.
A simple plan before the new year
Start now with the free introduction and take a look around the Talent Hub. Spend the first two weeks working through the level 1 Introduction diploma and learning resource bank, then the next weeks to complete Level 2 Product Knowledge and Level 3 Sales and update your application. By January you will be ready to apply with confidence. From there, the next stage will completing all of the necessary paperwork in ready to join in late Spring or early Summer. Good luck!
Some Frequently asked questions
Q - Is 2027 a good time to start a career in the cruise industry?
A - Yes. CLIA projects 40.3 million cruise passengers worldwide in 2027, and 15 new ships due for delivery that year. More ships and more guests mean new teams and new venues. Preparation matters, because more people will also be applying.
Q - How many new cruise ships launch in 2027?
A - 15 ships with 27,860 berths scheduled for delivery in 2027. The main ocean debuts include Hero of the Seas, Norwegian Aura, Carnival Festivale, MSC World Atlantic, Disney Believe and Oceania Sonata.
Q - What is changing in cruise ship retail?
A - More focus on high communication skill positions with a move from basic duty free to experience-led retail: tastings, masterclasses, personalisation, pre-loved luxury, shop-in-shops, watches and jewellery, and app-linked offers. Storytelling and product knowledge are becoming central to how staff sell.
Q - What jobs are available in cruise retail?
A - Roles on the Academy's Talent Hub include assistant retail manager, beauty specialist, art consultant, cruise photographer and more. Search the Talent Hub for current roles, contract lengths and salary guides, and see our career roadmap for the route from first contract to shop manager.
Q - How much does a cruise shop manager earn?
A - Our 2026 career roadmap and salary guide puts shop manager earnings at around $2,700 to $4,200 or more in gross monthly pay (tax free), depending on the operator, ship and role. There are only around 400 shop managers in the whole industry.
Q - When should I start training if I want to join in 2027?
A - Now. Learning the product, the sales standard and the pace of life at sea before you apply helps you stand out, and settle faster once you join. The Academy's free introduction and learning resource bank are the easiest places to start.
Start your journey today!
2027 is going to be a big year for cruising. Make sure you are ready to be part of it.
By Adrian, founder of Cruise Retail Academy and Head of Retail at MSC Cruises from 2015 to 2023. Last updated 05/11/26.
Sources: AAA, Record 22.4 million Americans expected to cruise in 2027 · CLIA 2026 State of the Cruise Industry, via TravelPulse · ShipUniverse, 2027 Cruise Industry Outlook · ShipUniverse, Cruise retail is moving from basic duty free toward experience-led selling · Moodie Davitt Report, Harding+ on the forces shaping cruise retail in 2026 · Cruise Trade News, Is cruise still in the midst of a talent crisis? · Faststream, workforce challenge behind cruise expansion · Cruiseline.com, new ships debuting in 2027 · Cruise Critic, new 2027 itineraries · Cruise Critic, private islands guide
Very insightful article. The industry is ever changing. That’s a fact. New year. New challenges. New opportunities arise. 🫶🏻