Cruise market: a real opportunity for transatlantic shipping lines in the 1960s – the case of the Spanish company Ybarra

Abstract

The late 1950s saw the beginning of the end of transatlantic passenger shipping lines. Contrary to optimistic forecasts about the future of the sector, shipping companies had to deal with an irreversible crisis; some of them found an alternative to the mooring of ships in the emerging tourism market. The first objective of this article is to analyse the two main reasons behind the process that laid the foundations for the modern cruise industry: the decline of European transoceanic migration and the development of air traffic. Next, this essay focuses on the strategic development of the shipping line Ybarra. Started as a marginal activity, the cruise became its primary business and prompted the internationalisation of its initiatives. Finally, the author conducts a quantitative analysis of cruise activity developed by the Spanish company in the 1960s.