If there was one resounding message amongst cruise line executives at Cruise Shipping Miami’s State of the Industry session it was – the customers are back! The tone was a far cry from last year’s convention where the weakened economy overshadowed each presentation.

Kevin Sheehan, CEO of Norwegian Cruise Line joked that everyone should have taken his advice last year to buy Carnival Corporation and Royal Caribbean stock, shares in these companies have risen by almost 100 and 300 percent, respectively. Continuing on the stock theme Sheehan noted that the stock market is usually a leading indicator as to where an industry is headed. “We should all feel a sense of cautious optimism that the industry is being looked upon so favorably,” said Sheehan.

Now that the industry is rebounding the other message is prices are going up. “Most lines lost 10 to 20 percent off their ticket price in 2009”, said Gerry Cahill, president and ceo of Carnival Cruise Lines. He added, “We’re all pushing to rebuild that price.”

“It will take time for us to get to the pricing that the industry deserves,” said Dan Hanrahan, president and CEO of Celebrity Cruises. Hanrahan said he expects the industry yields to increase by 3 percent to 4 percent this year. Still, he doesn’t think the cruise industry got the yields it deserved back in 2006 when the economy was stable.

Cruise executives touted the value of a cruise vacation as key to its continued growth. “A study found a family on a five-night cruise could save 15 percent compared with going to Las Vegas or Orlando,” said Norwegian’s Sheehan.

The executives also talked about the growth of worldwide fleet deployment and new destinations. There were also harsh words for Alaska governor (Sean Parnell) who was seated in the audience. Holland America Line president and ceo Stein Kruse stated that Alaska’s 30 year record of cruise passenger growth ended in 2009 and capacity is down 17 percent this year – the only place in the world where there is a decline in cruise tourism.

“Alaska’s regulatory environment is more burdensome and costly than anywhere else in the world,” Kruse said. He went on to state that since the 2006 citizens’ ballot initiative, Alaska has collected $200 million in taxes that they don’t know where to spend it on.

Kruse added that the cruise industry supports reasonable environmental but is concerned with “overzealous regulations” when the technology does not exist to meet those regulations. “We can redeploy to other destinations if we’re not able to comply with reasonable operating requirements,” he added.

According to top cruise executives on today’s State of the Industry panel at Cruise Shipping Miami the value of cruising will weather the tough economic storm. There’s no doubt the economy is in tough shape yet cruise executives remained optimistic that they will weather this storm as they have done in the past.

“The cruise industry is poised to get through these hard times and will come out stronger in the end,” said Rick Sasso, chair of the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) Marketing Committee and president and CEO of MSC Cruises USA. Sasso stressed the value of cruising as the reason. “‘The value component is a more powerful message today than ever before.”

“We need to stay strong on the value message,” said Kevin Sheehan, CEO of Norwegian Cruise Line. Sheehan said initiatives like job loss insurance and reduced deposits are helping skittish consumers book a cruise vacation.

Carnival Cruise Lines’ CEO Gerry Cahill said having more cruise ports within driving distance is helping consumers, especially families, make the decision to book a cruise. Cahill said Carnival’s 17 North American homeports has helped the company during the economic crunch.

Celebrity Cruises CEO Dan Hanrahan noted that the average booking window at Celebrity has shortened quite a bit since last year, but he said it’s a temporary situation. “I think the consumer needs to see that the economy is starting to recover,” he said. “When the consumer gets that confidence I think you’ll see the booking window extended again.”

Holland America CEO Stein Kruse blamed the media for consumer fears with the nightly reports of economic gloom and doom. “We’re being told to be scared. We’re being told there’s a crisis. There are unprecedented levels of foreclosures. The fact is that more than 90 percent of Americans have jobs and pay their mortgages. Our best times are ahead of us and we should not forget about that.”

Under sunny blue skies and with a royal blessing, Holland America Line christened its newest and largest ship, the ms Eurodam, in Rotterdam, the city where the 135-year-old Dutch company was founded. Fittingly the ceremony was held near the company’s original headquarters, now the Hotel New York.

The Eurodam’s godmother is her majesty Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, who blessed and named the ship with the ceremonial champagne smash.

Here are some photos from today’s event. More to come later.

Cruise line executives speaking at the annual Seatrade Cruise Shipping Convention in Miami last week presented a surprisingly rosy outlook despite record oil prices and the U.S. economy’s bleak outlook.

While not immune to a weakening economy, the cruise industry has a track record for standing strong in harsh economic times. Gerald Cahill, Carnival Cruise Lines’ president and chief executive, pointed to the tough years of 1990 and 2001. “In spite of those years, cruise lines still grew,” he said. “The industry was remarkably resilient despite the economic downturn.”

“We’re weathering this quite well,” said Dan Hanrahan, president and chief executive of Celebrity Cruises and Azamara Cruises, divisions of Royal Caribbean Cruises International. “Travel agents remain very bullish on what is going on, and travel agents are our leading indicators since they are having the conversations with customers.”

Cruising is a deal

Cruise executives cite the cruise product’s tremendous value at a low price as the main reason for optimism. Hanrahan noted that Americans still like to vacation, but they will be looking for more bang for their buck. “The fact that cruising provides such value is what’s helped the cruise industry weather this storm so far,” he said. Indeed, Cahill noted that on average cruises are about 20 to 50 percent cheaper than comparable land-based vacations.

Stein Kruse, president and CEO of Holland America Line, chimed in about value saying he had recently opened cruise brochures from the 1980s and 1990s. “We’re still selling cruises at the same price. That’s without adjusting for inflation and other factors,” said Kruse.

Despite the tanking economy, don’t expect a lot of discounting on cruise prices in the coming year, says Cahill. “It’s my guess that cruise pricing will end up being much more resilient than many of the doom-sayers are indicating,” said Cahill.

Cruising is more global

With cruise ships now positioned around the globe, cruise lines have further insulated themselves from U.S. economic woes. “We can move ships and the economics tell us where to put our ships,” says Rick Sasso, president of MSC Cruises USA.

Today the economics are telling cruise lines to put their ships in Europe to ply the lucrative Mediterranean waters. “We don’t have all our eggs in one basket,” said Colin Veitch, president and chief executive of Norwegian Cruise Line. He says the Caribbean is the still the biggest destination for ships, but, “it’s a vote of confidence” in the European market to move ships there.

Executives also hinted at the next big destination – Asia. Singapore, Taiwan and Korea announced new cruise terminals anticipating the growth. Cruise executives say the new cruise terminals aren’t just targeted at North American cruise travelers but are also aimed at the people who live in the region. Are there any other territories cruise lines are looking at? Sasso summed up globalization this way: “Wherever there is a population and water, there is a chance to have a ship.”

Ships get specialized

One thing that’s quickly changing onboard many ships is the amenities. It used to be that guests shared all the ship’s public spaces no matter what category of stateroom they booked. “This is changing,” said Adam Goldstein, president and chief executive of Royal Caribbean International. “Guests paying top dollar for the best accommodations expect special treatment outside their stateroom,” he added. He dubbed the trend ‘disegalitarianism.’

Indeed, special private dining spaces and lounges are popping up to serve the customers in the priciest staterooms. Cunard Line has its Queen and Princess Grills rooms with access to special restaurants, Norwegian Cruise Line has villas with private pool and courtyard, and MSC Cruises will be offering a private “Yacht Club” area on their upcoming ships. Even Carnival is getting in on the private public spaces act. When the line launches the new Carnival Splendor in July it will offer spa-only staterooms with exclusive access to the ship’s spa facilities.

Still, extra and better amenities aren’t only for guests paying top dollar. Carnival is redesigning its ships to offer different interest areas to enhance the onboard guest experience like the adults-only Serenity deck spaces and the family-friendly WaterWorks pool areas. “We’re all trying to attract different kinds of people,” Cahill said.

6 miles of ships

With 36 new ships scheduled for delivery from 2008 through 2012, the cruise industry is betting big that worldwide demand will grow. Hanrahan said 12.6 million passengers took cruises in 2007 with 10.3 million of those coming from North America. The industry expects an increase in worldwide cruise passengers this year to 12.8 million people with steady growth continuing in the years beyond.

Total cost for the 36 ships is approximately $22 billion. Hanrahan also cited one fun fact about the 36 new ships — put them all end-to-end, and they’d stretch six miles long.