List of cruise lines

A cruise line is a company that operates cruise ships and markets cruises to the public. Cruise lines are distinct from passenger lines which are primarily concerned with transportation of their passengers. Cruise lines have a dual character; they are partly in the transportation business, and partly in the leisure entertainment business, a duality that carries down into the ships themselves, which have both a crew headed by the ship's captain, and a hospitality staff headed by the equivalent of a hotel manager.

Because of mergers and consolidations, a cruise line may also be a brand of a larger holding corporation. For example, as noted below, Carnival Cruise Line and Holland America Line are cruise lines within the larger parent corporation Carnival Corporation & plc. This industry practice of using the brand, not the larger parent corporation, as the cruise line is also followed in the member cruise lines in Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA); the listing of cruise ship sales, transfers, and new orders; cruise line market share; and the member-based reviews of cruise lines.

Cruise ships can cruise in oceans or rivers. The listing of cruise lines below includes separate lists for both areas. Cruise lines operating ocean and river ships can be found in both lists.

List of cruise lines by size

As of 2021, the cruise industry was estimated to be around US$23.8 billion with 13.9 million passengers per year. The following is a list of the largest cruise lines with over 1,000 passengers per year and their market share by passengers and revenue as of 2021 according to Cruise Market Watch. The list also includes the combined market share of each of the cruise line holding companies: Carnival Corporation & plc, Royal Caribbean Group, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, TUI Group, and Genting Hong Kong.

Legend:

• Bold: Major cruise company
• Italic: Subsidiary of a major cruise company

List of ocean cruise lines

Operational

Shipping line still in service

The following is a list of defunct ocean cruise lines where their shipping line is still in service.

Defunct

List of river cruise lines

Operational

The following is a list of operational river cruise lines.

Defunct

The following is a list of defunct river cruise lines.

See also

• List of ferry operators
• List of cruise ships
• List of largest cruise ships

References

1. Cruise line
2. Carnival Cruise Line
3. List of cruise ships
4. List of largest cruise ships
5. MSC Cruises
6. Princess Cruises
7. Sphere-class cruise ship
8. Norwegian Cruise Line
9. Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings
10. Cruise ship
11. List of U.S. flagged cruise ships
12. Cruise West
13. List of Disney Cruise Line ships
14. Dream-class cruise ship
15. Royal Caribbean Group
16. Genting Hong Kong
17. Minoan Lines
18. Viking (cruise line)
19. Spirit-class cruise ship
20. Carnival Cruise Lines, Inc. v. Shute