Earlier this year, Adora Cruises received what it called a significant investment from China Cruises, a shareholding company overseen by the China Tourism Group.

“This lays a solid foundation for the strengthening of its position in the market and its future development,” said Roger Chen, CEO.

Later this year, the brand will welcome its one millionth passenger since starting operations in September 2023, Chen said.

That was when the former Costa Mediterranea launched as the Adora Mediterranea. She was then joined in 2024 by the Adora Magic City, build in China on the Carnival Vista ship platform. An upsized version of her, the Adora Flora City, is set be delivered at the end of 2026.

“The construction has entered the phase of interior outfitting and system testing. The sea trials will take place sometime next May,” said Chen. “We expect her delivery in December 2026, with the official maiden voyage set sail from Guangzhou.

“With another ship, we will have a more balanced deployment, covering the North, East and South markets in China,” Chen added.

New Ship Changes

The upsized Adora Flora City will be 17 meters longer than the Magic City.

The ship’s atrium will be doubled in size, said Chen, and the theme will be centered around flowers.

“The vessel will be equipped with more advanced smart and AI technologies to enhance guest experiences and convenience. The vessel will also be technologically upgraded to enable more efficient and eco-friendly cruise operations,” Chen said.

 Sailing from China

Chinese cruise stats are up, said Chen, with guest traffic up 40.1 percent through the first half of 2025 compared to 2024, which was significantly down compared to 2019.

“Another factor benefiting the growth of the Chinese cruise market is the changing demographics and the gradual aging of the Chinese society,” Chen explained. “By the end of 2024, China’s population aged 60 and above reached 310 million, accounting for 22 percent of the total.

“Without the full participation of the senior citizens, it is difficult for the cruise business to reach scale in a short period of time.”

Chen pointed out that there are eight ships operating in China and primarily sourcing Chinese guests, and just two are operated by what he called international cruise companies (Royal Caribbean and MSC).

“Chinese cruise companies are more flexible, either in the sales model or product offerings, to the changing demand of guests, which will ultimately lead to an expansion of the cruise business,” he said. “The cruise product is by and large still determined by the supply side. But that will change, meaning that in a unique market like China, the product designs will be increasingly shaped by consumers’ needs, preferences and special demands.”

Booking Funnel

Bookings are split between charters, direct bookings and agents taking blocks of cabins, said Chen.

“There is a Chinese proverb, ‘Even the best man needs the help of three others.’ It is our long-term strategy to have a win-win with our trade partners. They have in-depth market knowledge and understand the consumer needs.

“We’ve been vigorously developing our own direct sales channels, including our customer service center, website, WeChat mini program, Fliggy and Tiktok stores. We’ve also been continuously exploring the live-streaming format to sell directly to guests. For instance, we carried out 24-hour live-streaming during a campaign with Tiktok this April, achieving an accumulative viewership of 6 million people.”

China has a shorter booking window, which is generally one to three months before the sail date.

Part of that is driven by the short-cruise product, said Chen, which doesn’t require as much planning time.

“But we’ve adopted flexible sales strategies and a variety of early-bird discount programs to provide consumers with more options and encourage them to book voyages further in advance,” he explained.

Flagship Brand

Chen’s vision is to build Adora into the flagship cruise company in China

“Adora also benefits from an experienced professional team. Some of our colleagues have been working in the cruise industry from the early days in China. They are top notch,” he said.

“Adora is a company that listens attentively to its guests. We are more adaptable to changing requests, properly because we are close to the market, and we feel we know our customers better than others. Through continuous innovation and excellent services, Adora Cruises will achieve its set goal.”

Excerpt from the Cruise Industry News Quarterly Magazine Fall 2025