We're in a really good position moving into 2025. The U.S. is our key market, and from an economic standpoint, the U.S. is looking strong. Demand continues to be very, very positive.
We're in good shape with forward bookings, but we're a new brand, so we don't really have year-on-year comparisons. We opened bookings for Explora III, which will launch in the summer of 2026, so we've got two in the water and we're taking bookings for three.
About a quarter of our guests are new to cruise, so they book us more like they would a land-based hotel, which is sort of during a two- to four- month booking window. We're seeing really good demand closer to dates of sailings and the pace of bookings get stronger and stronger.
As regards the economic and political situation, I don't see any major headwinds, though we keep in close touch with our market leaders in case there's any change. I don't think there's anything that should surprise us at this point.
We don't have sailings yet in Asia. It's not a key market now, but we have really strong plans in place to start marketing there.
I was just at ILTM and, having been in land-based hospitality before, it was interesting having conversations with my counterparts in hotels. They say, "All I'm hearing about is cruising." People want to take to the water, and there's a wave of momentum for the entire sector. The entry of Four Seasons, Ritz-Carlton and Aman into cruising, each with their own take, raises awareness for our sector. We're a new brand on a growth mission at exactly the right time.
Luxury cruising is growing. There were 720,000 luxury cruise passengers in 2022, and it's forecast to grow to about 1.3 million in 2027. I think it can go higher than that. We're a hotel whose home is the ocean, and we take you to a new destination each day.
We're going to be in Monaco with Explorer II next year, the only ship acting as a floating hotel for the entire duration of the Formula One Grand Prix. We've got lots of plans and activations for that week.
The great thing for us is that we don't have a ship launching in 2025. We have one in '26, two in '27, one in '28. Next year is a prime opportunity for me to get out to market, meet key partners, be at desk side, be at events. It will allow us to really listen to our partners and look at how we can improve, because beginning the year after there will be a quick succession of launches.
This interview was conducted by Arnie Weissmann.