S&P 500 jumps as AMD rally leads tech higher
Investing.com -- Cruise demand ended the summer on a mixed note, with signs of resilience in bookings for 2026 but some discounting creeping into the limited remaining 2025 inventory, according to Morgan Stanley.
“RCL/VIK, along with luxury/private destinations/Caribbean, are most in demand,” said Morgan Stanley in a note on Wednesday.
The bank noted that several U.S. travel agents reported August bookings rising mid-single digits month-on-month and year-on-year, particularly for Caribbean itineraries and voyages on Royal Caribbean and Viking.
Pricing was also described as “up slightly MoM and up HSD YoY across the space, with agents noting constructive growth into 2026.”
At the same time, Morgan Stanley said some agents had seen softer demand in August, attributing the slowdown to seasonal “back-to-school” effects as well as consumer concerns around inflation, tariffs, and layoffs.
Later bookings, shorter trips, and trading down to cheaper cabins were also observed, alongside the availability of last-minute deals.
Despite near-term fluctuations, Morgan Stanley said that with most of 2025 inventory already sold, “all eyes are on 2026,” where consensus forecasts yields broadly above historical averages.
Meanwhile, according to a Barclays note, cruise ticket prices were generally stable in August, especially in the Caribbean.
“Our tracker points to mostly stable ticket pricing in August for 1Q and 2Q26 sailings (-1% m/m for 1Q, flat m/m for 2Q),” the bank said. Caribbean pricing trends showed Carnival steady, Royal Caribbean down modestly, and Norwegian up 3% for 1Q26.
In Europe and Alaska, Barclays described mixed dynamics, with Premium Europe down 3% month-on-month for 3Q26 and Contemporary Alaska up 2%.