The Royal Caribbean Group has posted its sixth consecutive quarterly loss as it pulls up anchor on ships that have sat idle since the pandemic shut down cruising in March 2020.
On Wednesday, the Miami-based owner of 52 vessels posted a $1.3bn net loss for the second quarter, versus $1.6bn in red ink for the same period last year.
Adjusted loss came in at $1.3bn, unchanged from a year ago.
The New York-listed company had a $5.06 loss per share for the quarter, missing analyst consensus of a $4.40 loss per share but improving on the $6.13 loss per share a year earlier.
In the past three months, Royal Caribbean has announced itineraries for 21 ships sailing by 31 August, including vessels sailing from US ports.
It also plans to have 15 ships sailing from ports outside the US by then, bringing its total fleet at sea to 36 vessels across five brands.
These ships will account for more than 60% of Royal Caribbean's active capacity. The company expects to have 80% of capacity at sea by the end of the year.
"We're thrilled to be back on the water at accelerated speed in the US and elsewhere," chief executive Richard Fain said.
"After 16 months of being at a virtual standstill and another painful financial result this quarter, the flywheel is clearly picking up momentum."
Customer deposits have increased by $530m to $2.4bn, while the company ended the quarter with $5bn of liquidity.
It posted a $2.48bn first-half loss — an improvement on the $3.08bn loss for the first six months of 2020.
