I was at a party recently and the topic of cruise vacations came up, and that's when one guest asked if cruises were just something old people went on.
I've been asked or heard similar statements many times over the years, so I'm not new to this line of thinking, but it's surprising that so many hold onto this misconception about cruises. Especially given how prolific new ships have been in garnering all sorts of press for being anything but conventional and dull.
The Cruise Lines International Association says 22% of all cruisers were millennials and 14% were Gen Z. Those numbers are much higher on Royal Caribbean, where the average age of a cruiser is a millennial now.
A study last year by Morning Consult Intelligence showed Gen Z and millennial respondents were showing a greater interest in booking a cruise on one of the mainstream lines, with a 2-5% jump year-over-year.
Unfortunately, despite these growing numbers of young people wanting to cruise, the narrative has not yet caught up with the facts.
Targeting younger cruisers
Like all myths, there's a source of truth to them. But that's greatly changing with Royal Caribbean.
While some cruise lines may still retain an older demographic, the mainstream lines are moving forward to appealing to the younger generations.
"More than half of the millennials tell us they are more likely to consider cruising today compared to two years ago," said Royal Caribbean Group CEO Jason Liberty last year.
He says that up-tick in interest is because of, "the attractive value proposition of a cruise."
The result is almost 1 in 2 guests sailing on Royal Caribbean ships are millennials or younger.
The Royal Caribbean app has undergone tremendous updates and feature additions to make it more useful and more engaging. Not only does it contain activity information, but it has been designed to be more useful for younger cruisers.
Mobile badges make tracking which sailings and destinations you've visited more personal. There are "Netflix-style recommendations" for dining, nightlife, and excursions based on personal preferences. And push notifications make it easier to browse add-ons that could be of interest (and save money too).
Younger travelers see a cruise ship as an easy way to explore different places in one trip, "Consumers place significant value on visiting multiple destinations and this is even more important to Millennial and Gen Z consumers; something that cruising is uniquely positioned to deliver on."
More parties, less formality
Beyond the stats, what you can experience on a cruise has changed over the years and many of the trends lean towards people that want more than classic cruise activities.
Royal Caribbean made waves when it launched a brand new ship specifically aimed at attracting new cruisers and those that want a party vibe.
Utopia of the Seas was designed to be the weekend party cruise ship, and other ships have shifted to this dynamic as well.
In addition to the traditional things to do, there are more parties and themed events than ever before.
Royal Caribbean dropped the "formal night" moniker years ago, instead opting to lean into theme nights. While wearing a tuxedo is quite rare to see on a ship, families dressing up with matching outfits for Y2K night, white night, and Caribbean night are all much more popular than ever before.
Royal Caribbean went even deeper with appealing to families with building out an entire area of Icon of the Seas to be dedicated to young families.
Offering more than ever for parents and children to do together draws younger cruisers to try a cruise. Plus, their parents can opt for the party fun later in the evening after dropping their kids off at kids club.
"I'll be bored on a cruise"
Tangentially related to the idea only the "nearly wed and nearly dead" go on cruises is the idea it's a boring vacation.
This is probably rooted in the idea you wake up and go to the pool deck every day. In truth, there's so much more to do.
Cruise ships offer shopping, surfing, water slides, ice skating, laser tag, and deck parties. There are Broadway shows you can see, video games to play, gambling in the casino, karaoke and so much more.
If you look through the daily activities on Royal Caribbean, you'll quickly see how much is available to try.
Royal Caribbean designs its ships to compete with Las Vegas or Orlando. They want it to be a floating destination with more to do and try. So much of what you can do on land is available to do on a cruise ship too. And odds are even more.
