Norwegian Targets Marketing Overhaul with New Leadership, Leaner Spend

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings is moving to rebuild its marketing function at the Norwegian Cruise Line brand, bringing in new leadership and cutting overall spending, said Chairperson and CEO John Chidsey.

Speaking on the company’s first quarter 2026 earnings call, Chidsey acknowledged that marketing underperformance has been a significant part of the brand’s occupancy shortfall, and that correcting course will require both new personnel and a more disciplined approach to how dollars are allocated.

“We are looking to bring in new leadership in marketing at NCL and better align that function with revenue management, deployment, and sales,” Chidsey said. “This work is critical and will strengthen the business over time, but it may result in some near-term variability in top-line performance as we work through these initiatives.”

NCLH recently completed a search for a new chief people officer, and Chidsey said the company is continuing to build out its revenue management team, noting that new hires across both functions have not yet fully gelled, contributing to the wide guidance range the company issued for the full year.

On the spending side, NCLH expects to reduce marketing outlays as part of a broader spending cutback.

Chidsey said the company had lost its way on marketing efficiency, saying that spend had grown disproportionate to results over the past several years.

“Our spend increased dramatically, and we’re not nearly as efficient as our competitors,” Chidsey said.

CFO Mark Kempa offered a stark data point on the inefficiency, noting that NCLH had been spending approximately twice as much per berth as competitors.

“It’s about putting the dollars to work in the right places versus volume,” Kempa said.