Travel

With the advent of large passenger jet aircraft in the 1960s, intercontinental travelers switched from ships to planes, sending the ocean liner trade into a terminal decline. Certain characteristics of older ocean liners made them unsuitable for cruising duties, such as high fuel consumption, deep draught preventing them from entering shallow ports, and cabins often windowless designed to maximize passenger numbers rather than comfort. In the late 1950s and 1960s, ships such as Holland America Line's SS Rotterdam 1959, the French Line's SS France 1961, and Cunard Line's RMS Queen Elizabeth 2 1969 were designed to serve the dual purposes of ocean liner during the northern hemisphere summer months and cruise ship in the winter, incorporating doors and baffles that could be open or closed to divide classes or open the ship to one class, wherein all passengers received roughly the same quality berthing and most of the same facilities. Passengers in cabins in certain grades on the Queen Elizabeth 2 had access only to certain dining rooms.

Sovereign of the Seas was the first of Royal Caribbean International's Sovereign-class cruise ships.

Ocean liner services almost ceased in the 1970s and 1980s. The Rotterdam was put on permanent cruise service in 1968, while the France at the time the largest passenger vessel in the world was mothballed in 1974, sold to Norwegian Cruise Line in 1979, and after major renovations relaunched as SS Norway in 1980, thus becoming the first mega-cruise ship. The main exception was Cunard's Queen Elizabeth 2: although being put on more cruises, she maintained the regular transatlantic crossing tradition throughout the year, but with a stronger focus on leisure passengers, catering to a niche market of those who appreciated the several days at sea. International celebrities were hired to perform acts on board, along with cabarets, and with the addition of a casino and other entertainment amenities, the crossing was advertised as a vacation in itself.

The 1977–1986 television series The Love Boat helped to popularize the concept as a romantic opportunity for couples. Industry experts credit the series with increasing interest in the cruise industry, especially for those that weren't newlyweds or senior citizens, and for the resulting demand to spur investment in new ships instead of conversions. The influence was particularly notable for Princess Cruises, a line that partnered with the series and received a great deal of attention as a result.

Carnival Destiny later renamed Carnival Sunshine

Contemporary cruise ships built in the late 1980s and later, such as the Sovereign class which broke the size record held for decades by Norway, showed characteristics of size once reserved for ocean liners. The Sovereign-class ships were the first megaships to be built specifically for the mass cruising market. They also were the first series of cruise ships to include a multi-story lobby with a glass elevator and had a single deck devoted entirely to cabins with private balconies, instead of oceanview cabins. Other cruise lines soon launched ships with similar attributes, such as the Fantasy class, leading up to the Panamax-type Vista class, designed such that two-thirds of the oceanview staterooms have balconies. As the veranda suites were particularly lucrative for cruise lines, something which was lacking in older ocean liners, recent cruise ships have been designed to maximize such amenities and have been described as balcony-laden floating condominiums.

Oasis of the Seas with a six-deck-high outdoor area

Until 1975–1980, cruises offered shuffleboard, deck chairs, "drinks with umbrellas and little else for a few hundred passengers". After 1980, they offered increasing amenities. As of 2010, city-sized ships have dozens of amenities.

There have been nine or more new cruise ships added every year since 2001, including the 11 members of the aforementioned Vista class, and all at 100,000 GT or greater. The only actual ocean liner to be completed in recent years has been Cunard Line's Queen Mary 2 in 2004. Following the retirement of her running mate Queen Elizabeth 2 in November 2008, Queen Mary 2 is the only liner operating on scheduled transatlantic service, though she also sees significant service on cruise routes.