2021 Cruise Line Revenue Still Far From 2019 Levels Despite a more positive outlook on resuming cruises, cruise line revenue is still far from 2029 levels. Photo Credit: KPegg / Shutterstock.com The restart of the cruise industry might be needed more than we previously thought. The pandemic has had a terrible effect on the entire industry, and while 2020 was the worst year for cruise lines in modern history, 2021 is on the way to become the second worst. The cruise industry might have been building up reserves in the golden years before COVID-19, 2019, earning the three biggest cruise companies alone a record-breaking $38.4 billion. Those earnings have now been thoroughly depleted.