Beginning in the second half of the twentieth century, the cruise industry has flourished. Withstanding the economic downturn in 2008, cruises have seen an increasing number of people make travel an essential facet of their leisure (Jainchill). Thus, cruising has become a huge industry, generating $37.85 billion dollars in revenue annually. Over twenty million passengers cruise on these ships each year, sixty percent of whom originate in North America. Many of these twenty million passengers identify themselves as “cruisers.” Adorning shirts with slogans like “I’m a Cruiseaholic” and “I’d Rather be Cruising,” these cruisers largely derive their meaning from consumption. “Cruisers” do not identify in terms of social class but rather a lifestyle; they hence inhabit communities defined by consumption. The website Cruise Critic illustrates this; it provides a forum in which all cruisers can unite over their love of cruising even when on land (O’Guinn 11). As Cruise Critic poster H82seaugo says of Carnival cruising: “[It] creates a microcosm of cruisers, as opposed to just a bunch of people sailing on a ship.”

Yet while all identify as cruisers, these communities largely differ by cruise line, as evidenced by Seabourn Luxury Cruises and Carnival Cruise Lines. Seabourn and Carnival are two cruises within this industry that offer leisure defined by consumption. Carnival advertises affordable fun for all; supposedly anyone can partake in this leisure and have a guaranteed good time. Seabourn, by contrast, strives to be a paragon of luxury. Rather than advertise affordability or fun, Seabourn showcases its “intimate ships” that offer a “luxurious, yet relaxed” form of leisure (Seabourn). Despite these differences in brand, however, there exist numerous parallels between the two ships. While both cruise lines try to distance themselves from consumption, consumption ultimately defines the cruising experience. Guised as an escape from work, cruises represent conspicuous consumption, in which leisure actually serves as an opportunity to represent a particular lifestyle. In this regard, the cruise industry mediates mass culture and robs consumers of their critical faculties.