Cruise lines are having a moment as a popular — and cheaper — alternative to hotels

The demand for cruises is still going strong — and it doesn't appear to be letting up anytime soon.

The industry was the last to recover from the Covid pandemic, but once it did, it has been enjoying strong pricing and booking momentum. While pricing growth is starting to normalize somewhat, it is still well above the rate of inflation, said Patrick Scholes, travel and leisure analyst at Truist.

"Cruise companies are having a moment right now," he said in an interview with CNBC.

Despite price increases, cruises are still cheaper than land-based lodging. That's helping the industry stand out as some weakness creeps into other areas of the travel sector. For instance, on Wednesday, Hilton CEO Christopher Nassetta said during the company's quarterly earnings call that U.S. leisure travel demand "is flat, maybe even a little bit down."

"The Cruise industry's continued strength in bookings/demand, whilst cracks form across much of the rest of the travel market, is primarily driven by the combination of the still significant discount to land-based vacations coupled with the relatively elevated service levels," Barclays analyst Brandt Montour said in a note last week.

As of the second quarter, on a weighted-average basis, the big three cruise operators reported net revenue per diems 17% above 2019, he wrote. Net revenue per diem is the net revenue per passenger cruise day. Caribbean hotel room prices are about 54% ahead of 2019 and U.S. resort prices are up 24%, said Montour, quoting figures from data analytics firm STR.

Carnival CEO Josh Weinstein agreed those so-called cracks elsewhere can help boost his business.

"If that's true that the consumer is slowing down in other sectors, that really bodes well for us to be able to take