Travelers are paying more amid high fuel costs. Are cruises next?

Rising oil prices amid the war with Iran have translated to higher costs for air travelers – and cruises could be next.

Major U.S. airlines have increased bag fees as jet fuel prices have spiked, and drivers at the pump are seeing average gas prices over $4 per gallon. While major U.S. cruise lines have not yet introduced fuel surcharges, uncertainty remains – even after the U.S. and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire.

Tourists look at the Celebrity Silhouette cruise ship, from the old town of Willemstad, Curacao, in the Dutch Caribbean, on April 7, 2026.

Cruise companies have historically added surcharges during times of elevated oil prices, according to Patrick Scholes, a lodging and leisure analyst with Truist Securities. "History may not always repeat itself, but what do they say? It rhymes," he told USA TODAY.

Here’s what travelers should know.

Are higher oil costs impacting cruise lines?

The price of a barrel of Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, dropped by roughly $17 between the end of April 7 and the morning of April 8. However, the price is still around 26% higher than before the war began in late February.

Fuel represents about 20% of major cruise companies’ costs, Scholes said. Most of them hedge, purchasing a contract to lock in a price. "Now, why they do this is essentially to prevent volatility in their earnings," he said. "It creates a higher degree of certainty of what your expenses are going to be."

Carnival Corp., which owns major brands like Carnival Cruise Line, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises and others, is the only major U.S. cruise operator that doesn’t engage in that practice – though it was the S&P 500’s highest-performing stock on April 8.

"They have the most exposure of the cruise lines, or of many, many companies, to fuel prices because they don't lock it in," Scholes said. "And so they take that risk. And when the fuel goes down, it's great for the stock, and when it goes up, it hurts you the most. So they're benefiting today, but in order to benefit today, they took a lot of pain to get here."

Will my cruise cost go up as a result of higher fuel prices?

In order to cover costs, Scholes said cruise lines have two main options. They could raise cruise prices outright, which he said is unlikely given that higher oil expenses could be temporary, or add a surcharge. The latter could show up as an added fee that travelers would see at checkout.

"The cruise lines are kind of saying to the customer, 'This is something out of our control,' or 'Yeah, we're sorry, but we have to do this. You as a consumer can understand why we're doing this, as opposed to us just raising prices here,'" he said.

Those have typically been charged on a per passenger, per day basis.

Surcharges were used after oil prices jumped in 2007 and 2008, with cruise lines like Carnival and Royal Caribbean adding $5 to $10 fees, The Points Guy reported. Scholes said, however, that those could be as high as $20 to $50.

In the wake of the war with Iran, Asian cruise company StarDream Cruises introduced a fuel surcharge in March, Travel Weekly reported.

"Like many sectors across the global economy, from logistics to tourism and manufacturing, and beyond, maritime is monitoring evolving fuel market conditions," Cruise Lines International Association, the industry’s leading trade group, told USA TODAY. "Fuel price impacts vary by operator depending on a range of factors, including itinerary and vessel type, among other factors."

The organization also noted that individual cruise lines make commercial decisions regarding pricing.

Carnival Corp. told USA TODAY it has no plans to change its pricing model. Royal Caribbean Group, parent company of Royal Caribbean, Celebrity Cruises and Silversea Cruises, similarly said in a statement, "While many factors contribute to our pricing, we have no intentions of changing our strategy."

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. did not specify whether it intends to implement a fuel surcharge or otherwise raise prices but pointed to a March earnings release, which noted that the company had hedged about 51% of its total projected metric tons of fuel consumption for 2026 as of mid-January, and 27% for the following year. NCLH is the parent company of Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises.

"Our total fuel consumption for the full year 2026 is expected to be comprised mainly of heavy fuel oil and marine gas oil, as well as other fuel types," the company told USA TODAY. "Also, as we stated in our earnings release, a 10% change in fuel prices, net of hedges, would have a 7-cent impact on Adjusted (Earnings Per Share) for full year 2026, and a 1-cent impact on the first quarter of 2026."

How soon could cruise costs go up?

Scholes said it’s hard to know when cruise lines could make those changes, if they do. However, he expects they would come "sooner than later" given that oil prices have been elevated for over a month.

He noted that cruise lines are highly booked for much of the year, and said he wouldn’t expect them to add those charges retroactively. For that reason, travelers would be more likely to see them on cruises sailing in the third and fourth quarters of 2026.

"Even if the geopolitical tensions continue to subside, I don't think anybody's expecting the oil prices to go back down to where they were two months ago anytime soon," Scholes said.

Nathan Diller is a consumer travel reporter for USA TODAY based in Nashville. You can reach him at [email protected].