Tourism

Cruises: last-minute deals are on the wane and prices are rising

Since 2021, the average cost of a cruise has risen by 82 per cent. Only one in ten Italians book their cruise within 30 days of departure

by Raoul de Forcade

25 July 2026

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4' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

Key points

Last-minute sales are now negligible
Three reasons for the collapse
45% of bookings are for the Mediterranean

4' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

Last-minute cruise bookings in Italia are on the wane. Only one in ten Italians book a cruise within 30 days of departure, whilst the average cost per person for a cruise has soared (+82 per cent) compared with five years ago. The figures, compiled this month, come from Ticketcrociere, the leading Italian sales platform in the sector, and highlight a clear prevalence of early bookings over last-minute ones. In particular, in the first six months of the year, early-booking purchases (departure more than nine months away) were more than double those of last-minute bookings (departure within 30 days): out of a total of 3,409 bookings, the former accounted for 21.06 per cent compared with 9.33 per cent for the latter. More than two in ten bookings, therefore, were made well in advance, whilst fewer than one in ten were made at the last minute.

As for prices, figures from Ticketcrociere show that, in the first six months of 2026, the average cost per person for a cruise was 1,490 euros, an increase of 82 per cent compared with the 819 euros recorded in 2021; whilst the average spend per booking reached €3,611, representing a 74 per cent increase compared with the €2,076 recorded in 2021 and a 16.8 per cent rise compared with the €3,093 recorded in 2025. In this context, early booking is an option that allows travellers to plan their trip and spread their expenditure more effectively over time.

Last-minute sales are now negligible

This is explained by Matteo Lorusso, managing director of Taoticket, the parent company behind the Ticketcrociere, Ticketferries.com and Ticketprivatejet.com brands. “For 2026,” he says, “we were expecting a slight increase in the share of last-minute bookings, but, even looking at data from previous years, this sales channel now represents only a marginal share of the market. On the one hand, this is good news for us, because early booking allows for better planning of commercial strategies. Last-minute bookings, however, almost always guarantee that the booking will go ahead – a factor that is by no means insignificant – at a time when an international upheaval can trigger a wave of cancellations affecting hundreds of medium- and long-term bookings.”

In short, he continues, “last-minute bookings on cruise ships are now virtually non-existent: both cruise lines and passengers want certainty.” And at the root of this phenomenon, he explains, “there is not only the current international uncertainty, but a series of factors that have changed travellers’ habits.”

Three reasons for the collapse

In fact, according to Lorusso, there are three main reasons behind the slump in last-minute cruise bookings. As for the first reason – namely, rising prices – he reiterates: ‘Booking 8–12 months in advance allows families not only to plan their spending better, but also to spread the cost of the trip over time or to manage the repayment of any loan taken out via “buy now, pay later” schemes with greater flexibility’.

Another issue is that the cruise industry is gradually aligning itself with the model used by scheduled flights – a system to which the high-speed rail sector has also recently adapted, with the Frecciarossa trains. According to Lorusso, cruise lines have increasingly large ships, which need to achieve very high occupancy rates to break even on each individual cruise: ‘Dynamic pricing algorithms tend to reward those who book in advance, giving cruise lines greater certainty when planning their sales.’

Finally, the third reason is linked to the fact that today’s cruise passengers are no longer content with just any cabin: families are looking for connecting rooms, suites or cabins in specific locations on the ship; ‘those booking at the last minute have to choose from the options still available, which are often guaranteed cabins or those without a view. This shift is influenced, amongst other things, by the marketing strategies of cruise lines, from MSC Cruises to Costa Cruises, from NCL to Royal Caribbean: by promoting increasingly personalised additional services, the cabin is transformed from mere accommodation into a defining feature of the travel experience.”

45 per cent of bookings are for the Mediterranean

At a time when geopolitical uncertainty makes the future rather unpredictable, ‘one might think,’ Lorusso argues, ‘that people would put off their decision until the last minute, but the opposite is actually the case. Booking early becomes a form of protection – not just financial, but emotional as well. Those who book at short notice often do so not to save money but because of sudden needs, accepting either higher fares or taking advantage of last-minute offers which, usually, do not include a range of in-flight perks.”

Moreover, ‘contrary to what one might imagine, early bookings by Italians are not driven by exotic destinations or long-haul trips, but by the Mediterranean. In the first six months of the year, 45 per cent of bookings made well in advance were for cruises in the Mediterranean, whilst the Caribbean accounted for just 18.21 per cent’.

Raoul de Forcaderedattore
Luogo: Genova
Lingue parlate: italiano, inglese
Argomenti: shipping, nautica, economia, finanza.
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