A Force for Good: How Cruise Lines Give Back to the Communities and Destinations They Visit

In areas as diverse as disaster relief, scientific research, habitat restoration, school building, and meal distribution, cruise lines support the communities they visit with significant efforts to give back. mission seriously creating foundations to better support the conservation and humanitarian efforts and engaging shoreside employees and shipboard crew in community service project in port communities around the world. Cruise lines are using their economic power and international reach for good - to protect the planet, support people in need, and provide aid in difficult times.

"Strong communities are essential to delivering exceptional vacation experiences," said Jason Liberty, chairman and CEO of Royal Caribbean Group when he announced the launch of the Royal Caribbean Group Foundation in spring, adding that "tourism can be a force for long-term positive change."

Community support

"Protecting destinations also means investing in the resilience and well-being of the communities that live there," says Wassim Daoud, head of corporate social responsibility and sustainability for Ponant Explorations.

Cruise lines, for instance, can provide crucial support to populations in the destinations they visit.

To reduce food waste and combat food insecurity, Carnival Corporation's Costa Cruises and Carnival Cruise Line donate prepared food that is not consumed on board to food banks in 20 ports throughout Europe, Latin America, and the Caribbean. By the end of 2025, more than 320,000 meal portions were distributed worldwide.

Ponant provides fresh produce to remote communities in Greenland, where deliveries are limited. Disney Cruise Line distributes food to youth in Alaska and engages crew members to pack meal kits for families in the Bahamas.

Access to education is also a priority for cruise lines. Royal Caribbean partnered with ProDev (Fondation Progrès et Développement) to build a primary school in Haiti after a 2010 earthquake decimated many educational centers. The cruise line has covered educational expenses, such as books and uniforms, for the 4,600 students who have attended L'Ecole Nouvelle Royal Caribbean and later provided more than 700 graduates with scholarships to a high school in Cap Haitien.

River cruise line AmaWaterways supports schools in Cambodia, Colombia, and South Africa under its new River Borne Foundation. Silversea Cruises funded a renovation of the Amazonas School to create the first-ever library on Floreana Island in the Galápagos Islands, Ecuador, and supplied the library with desks and a starter collection of books.

Emergency relief

Cruise lines are intentional about their community work, but they are also quick to respond to emergency situations around the world.

In 2025, when Category 5 Hurricane Melissa struck Jamaica, Carnival Corporation, Royal Caribbean Group, and Disney Cruise Line each committed $1 million to relief efforts and delivered supplies such as fresh water, medicine, food, and bedding to the island by ship.

In March 2026, severe flooding damaged homes and forced evacuations on Oahu and Maui, Hawaii. Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, parent company of Norwegian Cruise Line, Regent Seven Seas Cruises, and Oceania Cruises, donated $50,000 to support relief efforts including food distribution and damage cleanup.

Seabourn Pursuit donated 4 tons of emergency supplies, including food and bedding, to Papua New Guinea after Cyclone Maila slammed the Solomon Islands in spring 2026.

Cruise lines also volunteer their ships for charter as emergency housing, in times of crisis. In 2022, shortly after the start of the Russia-Ukraine war, Holland America Line sent its Volendam ship to Rotterdam, the Netherlands, to house 1,500 Ukrainian refugees and provide them with private rooms, hot meals, internet, and access to the ship's amenities.

Environmental protection

The MSC Group, which includes MSC Cruises and Explora Journeys, focuses on protecting the sea and marine ecosystems "because it's the right thing to do," says Daniela Picco, executive director of the MSC Foundation. This includes the group's Marine Conservation Center in the Bahamas, where the goal is aiding reef restoration by growing more resilient coral. The center welcomes visiting marine scientists for hands-on research opportunities as well as guests

HX Expeditions partnered with the NFTree project to create a wildlife corridor near Ecuador's Mashpi Reserve, a protected area of the Chocó Andino cloud forest. The cruise line has contributed nearly $750,000 to protect more than 600 acres of forest in the area.

Deep in the Pacific, between Tasmania and Antarctica, Ponant works with the Macquarie Island Conservation Foundation to protect the UNESCO-listed island's biodiversity, including its 3.5 million breeding seabirds and significant elephant seal population. The cruise line's donations fund conservation management, research projects, and ecosystem recovery efforts.

Across companies, cruise line employees also participate in beach cleanups.

"Responsible tourism is not only about reducing impacts is also about creating positive and lasting contributions," says Ponant's Daoud. CLIA member cruise lines take this responsibility seriously and are rising to meet this challenge everywhere they travel.

© 2026 Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA). All rights reserved.

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