Marine Tourism Market Size, Share, Growth, and Industry Analysis, By Type (Cruise Tourism Yachting and Sailing Tourism and Others), By Service (Passenger Tickets Service Onboard and Other Service), Regional Forecast To 2035

• 

  Request a Free sample to learn more about this report

MARINE TOURISM MARKET OVERVIEW

The global marine tourism market was valued at USD 92.79 billion in 2025 and is expected to grow to USD 99.01 billion in 2026, reaching USD 177.6 billion by 2035, with a projected CAGR of 6.7% during the forecast period.

Marine tourism refers to recreational activities that involve travel away from one's home and have the marine environment or inland waters/waterways as their host or focus, such as sailing, boating, yachting, cruising, nautical sports, sea angling, marine wildlife watching, and some emerging activities such as sea kayaking, Coastal Rowing, Surfing, Windsurfing, and so on. It is a type of tourism in which tourists and visitors engage in both active and passive leisure activities, excursions, and travels on coastal waters, their shorelines, and the area around them.

The preference for nature-based recreational activities, increasing use of internet and social media, rising population, growth in international tourism, contribution of tourism in GDP and rising per capita income are all driving the marine tourism market forward.

KEY FINDINGS

COVID-19 IMPACT

 Pandemic Decreased the Demand for Marine tourism

The Covid-19 pandemic disrupted global supply chains. Manufacturing companies ceased all operations, and many businesses remained closed until reopening instructions were received from government officials. The spread of the coronavirus has had a significant impact on the marine tourism industry, as numerous nations implemented travel restrictions in an effort to slow its spread. Warnings to stay home on multiple occasions and two-week self-quarantine requirements upon travel arrival or departure further restricted the demand for tourism. Lockdown measures resulted in a temporary ban on manufacturing and processing, as well as import and export across a variety of industries. The decrease in the number of domestic and international travelers as a result of strict lockdown orders had negative impact on the demand for marine tourism.

LATEST TRENDS

Rising Demand for Vacations and Trips to Fuel Market Growth

The growth of market can be attributed to various factors such as the rising demand for recreation, growing per capita income of consumers, rising investment on tourism sector. The overall market is also expanding because of the demand for cruise travel. According to Cruise.co.uk, a survey of 1,200 people conducted in February 2022 found that 49% of consumers would be willing to travel by cruise in the next six months and 13% in the next three months. Further introduction of add on packages by key players to attract new consumers accelerating market development. For instance, Princess Cruises enhanced its wellness and add-on package offerings to customers in December 2022. All these factors are responsible for market growth.

• According to the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), over 30 million passengers participated in cruise tourism globally in 2022, marking a significant increase compared to 25 million in 2019 (UNWTO, 2023).

• The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) reports that recreational boating activities have increased by 12% between 2020 and 2022, with approximately 92 million Americans participating in water-based recreation (NOAA, 2023).

Request a Free sample to learn more about this report

MARINE TOURISM MARKET SEGMENTATION

By Type Analysis

According to type, the market can be segmented into cruise tourism yachting and sailing tourism and others.

In terms of application, cruise tourism is the leading segment.

By Service Analysis

Based on service, the market can be divided into passenger tickets service
onboard and other service.

In terms of service, passenger tickets service leads.

DRIVING FACTORS

Rise in Disposable Income of Consumers to Accelerate Market Demand

The market's expansion is aided by shifting consumer preferences, rising per capita income and middle-class disposable income. The demand for leisure travel is being supported by millennials' growing use of internet and social media. Additionally, understanding other cultures is still an important consideration when choosing a destination. Growing infrastructure development further accelerating marine tourism market growth.

• According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, $1.2 billion was allocated for port and marina development in 2022 to enhance marine tourism facilities.

• The European Travel Commission reports that 48% of Europeans engaged in domestic coastal travel in 2022, highlighting local tourism as a key driver for marine tourism (ETC, 2023).

Government Support Initiatives to Stimulate Market Growth

A nation's economic development can benefit from a number of tourism-related opportunities. It is one of the industries that is growing at the fastest rate and makes a significant contribution to a nation's GDP. Consequently, large-scale investments in the construction of roads, railways, and airports are a significant contributor to the expansion of the marine tourism market. Governments are employing a number of strategies to enhance tourism infrastructure. As a result, market is expected to witness substantial growth in the forecast period.

RESTRAINING FACTORS

Increase in Travel Taxes to Hinder Growth of Market

Tourism is one of the major source of revenue for the government. Rising price of travel taxes as a result of increasing government expenditure act as hurdle for growth of market. The market is being significantly held back from expanding by a number of significant factors, including legal enforcement, concerns about safety and protection, issues with regulations, and border issues. In addition, increase in ticket prices further restricts market growth.

• According to the International Maritime Organization (IMO), 65% of cruise ships had to modify routes or limit operations in 2022 due to marine environmental compliance.

• NOAA notes that in the U.S., 50% of recreational boating occurs between May and August, constraining tourism flow in off-peak months.

• Request a Free sample to learn more about this report

•  

MARINE TOURISM MARKET REGIONAL INSIGHTS

Growing Demand in Europe Anticipated to Boost Market Development

Due to the expanding tourism and travel industry, shifting landscape, and rapid economic development, Europe holds the leading position in marine tourism market share. The main elements to contribute to the industry growth in Europe are presence of strong infrastructure, rising disposable income of consumers and increasing demand for travel and trips.

KEY INDUSTRY PLAYERS

Market Growth is being influenced by Adoption of Innovative Strategies by Key Players

Prominent market players are making collaborative efforts by partnering with other companies to stay ahead of the competition. Many companies are also investing in new product launches to expand their product portfolio. The top key players in the market are Carnival Corporation, Royal Caribbean, Norwegian Cruise Lines, MSC Cruises, Genting Hong Kong, Disney Cruise, Silversea Cruises (Royal), Dream Yacht Charter. The strategies to develop new technologies, capital investment in R&D, improve product quality, acquisitions, mergers, and compete for the market competition help them to perpetuate their position and value in the market. Besides, collaboration with other companies & extensive possession over market shares by the key players stimulates market demand.

• Carnival Corporation: Manages a fleet of over 100 cruise ships worldwide, transporting more than 12 million passengers each year (CLIA, 2023).

• Royal Caribbean: Operates 63 ships, offering itineraries to over 300 destinations around the globe.

List of Top Marine Tourism Companies

• Carnival Corporation
• Royal Caribbean
• Norwegian Cruise Lines
• MSC Cruises
• Genting Hong Kong
• Disney Cruise
• Silversea Cruises (Royal)
• Dream Yacht Charter

REPORT COVERAGE

This report examines an understanding of the marine tourism market market’s size, share, and growth rate, segmentation by type, application, key players, and previous and current market scenarios. The report also collects the market’s precise data and forecasts by market experts. Also, it describes the study of this industry’s financial performance, investments, growth, innovation marks, and new product launches by the top companies and offers deep insights into the current market structure, competitive analysis based on key players, key driving forces, and restraints that affect the demand for growth, opportunities, and risks.

Furthermore, the post-COVID-19 pandemic’s effects on international market restrictions and a deep understanding of how the industry will recover, and strategies are also stated in the report. The competitive landscape has also been examined in detail to provide clarification of the competitive landscape.

This report also discloses the research based on methodologies that define price trend analysis of target companies, collection of data, statistics, target competitors, import-export, information, and previous years’ records based on market sales. Moreover, all the significant factors which influence the market such as small or medium business industry, macro-economic indicators, value chain analysis, and demand-side dynamics, with all the major business players have been explained in detail. This analysis is subject to modification if the key players and feasible analysis of market dynamics change.