Cruise passengers are taking longer trips, including epic 100-night journeys

Luxury line Regent Seven Seas Cruises recently rolled out its 2027-28 season, during which its various suave ships will sail 234 itineraries across the world. Among the most eye-catching were five Grand Voyages and an even more epic 133-night world cruise.

One of the Grand Voyages is a 61-night sailing departing in November 2028 from Tokyo to Hong Kong – though needless to say, not on the most direct route. Seven Seas Splendor will sail across eastern and South-East Asia, and make overnight stays in ports such as Shanghai, Ho Chi Minh City and Bangkok, as well as an extended stay in Bali.

Two other Grand Voyages are a 101-night sailing in Europe and 101-night journey from Athens to Auckland. Another cruise that caught my attention is a 32-night circumnavigation of Australia return from Sydney, which departs in January 2028 on Seven Seas Mariner.

It seems cruisers are ready and willing to board ships for extended lengths of time, no matter what the statistics say. According to the Cruise Lines International Association, the average length of cruises in 2025 declined slightly from the previous year to 7.5 days.

Cruise Trade News delved into cruise data for 2025 and noted that, while seven-day cruises remained most in demand and cruises of between 10 and 12 nights held steady, there was a noticeable uptick in the availability of 16-night cruises.

Among reasons for the growing number of longer cruises is that cruise lines are starting to take in a wider range of ports, and respond to the demand for more in-depth holidays. Expedition cruising is on the rise too, which often requires longer sailing times to get to remote regions.

But beyond the two-week cruise, there are some cruisers keen on much more. The trend began after the COVID-19 pandemic when travellers wanted to make up for lost time, but hasn’t yet faltered.

Regent Seven Seas offers the most luxurious long cruises, but are far from alone, even at the budget end. This year MSC Magnifica is sailing a 119-day world cruise, and Crown Princess one of 116 days.

Next year, Oceania’s new ship Oceania Aurelia is making a 180-day world cruise and two Grand Voyages of over 70 days. Cunard’s Queen Victoria sails a 111-night voyage, and Seabourn a 94-day expedition from the Arctic to Antarctica.

These are just a few examples. Even river-cruise lines are getting in on the action, with American Cruise Lines operating a 51-day itinerary across several American rivers this year.

While longer cruises are expensive, one of their advantages is that the per-day cost is generally lower than on shorter cruises, and many more inclusions are offered. Regent Seven Seas’ Grand Voyages, for example, include a pre-cruise hotel stay, special port events, shore excursions and door-to-door luggage service.

Part of the trend might also be driven by savings on airfares, with some travellers now preferring a single long cruise to several shorter ones.