Looking back on hotels, resorts and cruise lines stocks’ Q2 earnings, we examine this quarter’s best and worst performers, including Carnival (NYSE:CCL) and its peers.

Hotels, resorts, and cruise line companies often sell experiences rather than tangible products, and in the last decade-plus, consumers have slowly shifted from buying "things" (wasteful) to buying "experiences" (memorable). In addition, the internet has introduced new ways of approaching leisure and lodging such as booking homes and longer-term accommodations. Traditional hotel, resorts, and cruise line companies must innovate to stay relevant in a market rife with innovation.

The 15 hotels, resorts and cruise lines stocks we track reported a mixed Q2. As a group, revenues along with next quarter’s revenue guidance were in line with analysts’ consensus estimates.

Stocks--especially those trading at higher multiples--had a strong end of 2023, but this year has seen periods of volatility. Mixed signals about inflation have led to uncertainty around rate cuts. However, hotels, resorts and cruise lines stocks have held steady amidst all this with average share prices relatively unchanged since the latest earnings results.

Best Q2: Carnival (NYSE:CCL)

Boasting outrageous amenities like a planetarium on board its ships, Carnival (NYSE:CCL) is one of the world's largest leisure travel companies and a prominent player in the cruise industry.

Carnival reported revenues of $5.78 billion, up 17.7% year on year. This print exceeded analysts’ expectations by 1.9%. Overall, it was an exceptional quarter for the company with an impressive beat of analysts’ earnings estimates and an impressive beat of analysts’ operating margin estimates.

"We have made incredible strides in improving our commercial operations, strategically reallocating our portfolio composition and formulating growth plans, while strengthening even further our global team, the best in the business. Off the back of that effort, we closed yet another quarter delivering records, this time across revenues, operating income, customer deposits and booking levels, exceeding our guidance on every measure," commented Carnival Corporation & plc's Chief Executive Officer Josh Weinstein.

Unsurprisingly, the stock is down 1.9% since reporting and currently trades at $16.07.

Is now the time to buy Carnival? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Royal Caribbean (NYSE:RCL)

Established in 1968, Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) is a global cruise vacation company renowned for its innovative and exciting cruise experiences.