NEW YORK, Feb. 3 -- It's shaping up to be a record-setting year
for the North American cruise industry, according to Cruise Lines
International Association (CLIA).

The fast pace of cruise bookings for the month of January indicate that the
industry -- already expecting its greatest ever number of new berths -- is
well on its way to setting another record: over 6.5 million cruise passengers
by the end of 2000, according to CLIA.

Earlier this year, CLIA announced a fleetwide addition of 17,663 berths,
which represents a growth rate 50 percent higher than any previous year. Now,
with February just underway, cruise lines are announcing record bookings for
Wave Period, the first three full weeks after the New Year holiday and
traditionally a barometer of booking activity for the rest of the year.

"The high rate of January bookings indicates that we are on track to meet
our goal of over 6.5 million cruise passengers by the end of 2000, compared
with six million in 1999," says James G. Godsman. "This is a benchmark we are
most enthusiastic about setting."

A sampling of CLIA-member lines indicates the following Wave Period
activity:
-- On Jan. 9, Carnival Cruise Lines booked 4,744 guests, a 28 percent
increase over the corresponding Sunday from the year before, and a
record for Sunday bookings.
-- On Jan. 11, Celebrity Cruises had the best booking day ever in its
10-year history. The previous record, set Jan. 25, 1999, was surpassed
by 10 percent.
-- During the first full week of January, Costa Cruises booked 1,500-plus
cabins, for a 10 percent increase over the prior year.
-- Disney Cruise Line reports that it is ahead of plan with bookings for
cruise and land/sea vacations, as well as its new, seven-day eastern
Caribbean cruise program.
-- First European Cruises, a line that just began its third year marketing
in the U.S., booked nearly 400 guests in early January, an increase of
100 percent from last year.
-- Holland America Line is expecting an increase in bookings for the year,
based on a 40 percent surge in bookings during the second week of the
wave period.
-- During the first week of the wave period, Radisson Seven Seas Cruises
handled 25 percent more calls than in 1999, and took in 18 percent more
in revenue.
-- Throughout the month of January, Orient Lines enjoyed the highest call
volume in the line's history, driven primarily by the impending
addition of the M/V Crown Odyssey.
-- Bookings for Mediterranean Shipping Cruises (MSC) are up 21 percent in
January from last year, and MSC is 90 percent sold out for the winter
cruise 2000 season.
-- In the third week of January 2000, Crystal Cruises more than doubled
its revenue for the Wave Week period over the same period last year.

To learn more about cruise vacations, visit CLIA's website at
http://www.cruising.org, or visit a CLIA-affiliated travel agency. Find one
using the Cruise Expert Locator on CLIA's website, or by looking for the blue,
white and gold CLIA seal displayed in your local travel agency.

Cruise Lines International Association is a North American-based marketing
and training organization representing 25 of the leading cruise lines and
21,000 affiliated travel agencies.