Walt Disney Co yesterday unveiled plans to launch a new cruise ship to set sail from Tokyo starting in fiscal 2028, adding a ninth vessel to the brand’s growing fleet.
The new ship, to be modeled after the Wish, which is the largest vessel in the group, is a partnership with Oriental Land Co (OLC), the operator of Tokyo Disneyland. It is part of a 10-year, US$60 billion expansion of Disney’s theme parks and cruise business.
Disney has five cruise ships in operation. In addition to the Tokyo-based vessel, it has plans for three others, including one that is to set sail from Singapore next year.
Photo: Toru Hanai
The new Tokyo-based ship, whose name was not revealed, would have a maximum capacity of 4,000 passengers and is expected to bring in about ￥100 billion (US$621.77 million) in annual sales within several years of launch, OLC said.
“To set sail from Japan will make Disney vacations at sea more accessible to Japanese guests, who we know are some of our biggest fans,” Disney Signature Experiences president Thomas Mazloum told reporters.
The cruise line expansion comes as the industry is enjoying a rebound from a global shutdown during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Cruise Lines International Association expects the number of passengers to reach 34.7 million this year, up 17 percent from 2019.
Disney’s experiences business, which includes its domestic and international parks and cruise line, accounted for more than one-third of the company’s revenue in the March quarter and nearly 60 percent of its operating income.
The company’s stock tumbled in May after chief financial officer Hugh Johnston warned about a “global moderation” in travel in the fiscal third quarter and other impacts, including higher wages and pre-opening expenses related to two of the new cruise ships and the new vacation island, Lookout Cay.
The rising tide for Disney’s cruise lines could help offset any softness in the company’s domestic theme park business, UBS analyst John Hodulik said.
The company said its second-quarter booking occupancy is at 97 percent for all five ships.
The rapid expansion of Disney’s cruise capacity “helps derisk the medium-term outlook” for the parks business, Hodulik said.
Disney’s other recent investments include three new areas at the Tokyo DisneySea theme park, recreating the worlds of Frozen, Tangled and Peter Pan, the opening of a Frozen-themed land at Hong Kong Disneyland and a Zootopia experience in Shanghai.
The company at its D23 fan convention next month is expected to announce plans for new attractions at Disneyland in California and Walt Disney World in central Florida.
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