Back to the dawn of 19th-century passenger crossings to America-on liner services by behemoths traversing the Atlantic, you might say Pleasure Cruises have a long and prestigious history. Still going today are some of the first cruise pioneers, along with other lines just a bit younger whose magic has stood the test of time. Below, we chart a course through the world's oldest cruise lines still sailing, and some of the first journeys, itineraries, ships, and experiences to have taken shape.
Seabourn (1986)
Flash forward to today and the Seabourn fleet now has six owned vessels, and every suite on board offers opulent sea-facing accommodation. Above:seabourn-ovationLeaving Barcelona, Seabourn Ovation serves as the operator's second 600-passenger ship, having entered service in 2018.
Seabourn introduced expedition cruises in 2022 in addition to its chilled-out ocean voyages that established the brand - exploring places as remote as Australia's Kimberley coast, the Amazon, or the Northwest Passage - the line's long-established reputation for ultra-luxury derives from the service and the relaxed, intimate atmosphere aboard its ships.
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Windstar Cruises (1984)
Drawing also from the luxury private-yachting industry, Windstar Cruises’ maiden voyage took place on a single boat. The firm’s unique selling proposition lay in its flotilla of four-masted sailing yachts – the only cruise line that offered such sailing adventures during the period of its establishment.
One of the three sailing yachts from the launch of the Windstar Cruises, still in service today, is the Wind Star. The other is Wind Song, which the firm commissioned in 1987 and captured above entering Cook’s Bay in French Polynesia in 1995. The engine room fire in 2002 sunk the vessel, which resulted in the irreversible damage of the vessel but fortuitously no loss of life.
Windstar Cruises (1984)
Windstar Cruises today operates in over 60 countries with a discerning and sophisticated clientele that enjoys the many iconic destinations as well as the hidden jewels of five continents, sailing in its own fleet of three all-suite motor yachts ('Star Plus Class') and three classic sailing yachts ('Wind Class').
The brand's flagship, the five-masted schooner Wind Surf (shown here), is one of the largest sailing ships in the world and can carry 342 passengers. Windstar is undergoing a complete refit as part of a multiyear restoration of its Wind Class yachts, which is scheduled to be complete in 2026.
American Cruise Lines (1972)
You can hardly fault any of these small-ship cruise line's all-American attitude, though. An American ship builder created ACL in 1972, which only cruises on American waters, employs an all-American crew, and is the only U.S.-owned and -operated cruise line where all of its boats are made in the US and fly a US flag. The picture is of ACL's American Star (launched in 2007), drifting through the Intracoastal Waterway just north of Charleston, S.C. The boat is now used for their New England Islands Cruise with stops to Nantucket, Block Island and others.
American Cruise Lines (1972)
American Cruise Lines offers more than 400 shore excursions across 35 states aboard 21 ships, from riverboats and old-timey paddlewheelers to larger vessels that ply the nation’s coastline. American Pride, a regular participant on the cruise line's Columbia and Snake River cruises, docks here in the picture. This classic paddlewheeler has a Western/Native American inspired decor and celebrates the iconic journey of Lewis and Clark in mapping this territory.
Carnival Cruise Line (1972)
In 1972, Israeli businessman Ted Arison established a small cruise venture – an arm of Boston-based travel agency The Travel Group Inc. Beginning life as an ‘owned and operated’ ship, it used a modified transatlantic liner known as the Mardi Gras as its inaugural vessel, seen here at Montréal in August 1979.
By the 1980s, Carnival Cruises forged ahead of the industry with their first new ship in the world, the Tropicale, igniting new world build capacity and greater opportunities for the company, and they were the first to be broadcast on network television.
Royal Caribbean (1968)
First bearing the name Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines, a group of Norwegian ship owners established Royal Caribbean International in 1968 to penetrate the U.S. market. The first ship they acquired, the Song of Norway, sailed into the sea in 1970, closely trailed by the Nordic Prince in 1971 and the Sun Viking in 1972.
Much smaller than today’s super-sized vessels, the cruise company introduced larger ships into the line-up in the 1980s. In the image is Grandeur of the Seas, the fleet’s oldest ship, which launched in 1996.
Norwegian Cruise Line (1966)
Founded in 1966 by a joint venture between Norwegian shipping executive Knut Kloster and Carnival Cruise Line founder Ted Arison, the line started as Norwegian Caribbean Line, and its first ship, MS Sunward, moved from Europe to PortMiami for the start of cruises in the Caribbean. As the company grew slowly over decades, NCL purchased, repurposed and constructed ships on a large scale in the 1990s, including Norwegian Sky, which departed the German Bremerhaven shipyard in 1999 on its first sea trial.
Conclusion
Looking back at these cruise pioneers shows just how much the travel world has shifted. It’s pretty wild that massive modern vacation brands like Carnival and Royal Caribbean started out with just one or two small, repurposed ocean liners back in the late 60s and 70s.
Whether it’s Windstar keeping the romance of massive sailing yachts alive, Seabourn cornering the ultra-luxury market, or American Cruise Lines focusing entirely on homegrown river trips, these companies didn't just survive—they shaped how we travel. They proved that a great sea voyage never really goes out of style.
Common Questions Answered
Which cruise line in this group has been around the longest?
Norwegian Cruise Line takes the crown here. They started way back in 1966 as a partnership between a Norwegian shipping boss and the guy who would later found Carnival. Their first ship, the MS Sunward, basically kicked off the modern Caribbean cruise craze out of Miami.
What makes American Cruise Lines different from the big mainstream lines?
They keep everything strictly local. They only sail in US waters, every single one of their ships is built in America, they fly the US flag, and they hire an all-American crew. They use everything from regular coastal ships to old-school paddlewheelers on rivers.
Did Carnival really start out with just one recycled ship?
Yes. When Carnival started in 1972, they relied on a single modified transatlantic ocean liner named the Mardi Gras. They didn't even build their first brand-new custom ship, the Tropicale, until the 1980s.
Are any of the original Windstar sailing ships still around?
Yes, the Wind Star is still sailing today. However, its sister ship, the Wind Song, suffered an engine room fire in 2002 that destroyed the vessel, though thankfully everyone onboard survived.