<p><span class="vitstorybody">A sea change may be taking place in luxury cruising. </span></p>
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<p>Battered by the economic recession and with new ships to fill, luxury cruise lines have responded by offering heavy discounts and other perks to attract customers, and that has given rise to a new type of passenger.</p>
<p>"We did a survey of the first cruises on our new ship, the Seabourn Odyssey," says Seabourn Cruises' Bruce Good, "and found the number of first-timers was 25 percent higher than the average. And the number of passengers 45 and under was 64 percent higher."</p>
<p>Traditionally, luxury lines have attracted affluent passengers who are much older. But today's deals and discounts are drawing younger cruisers now able to afford the bargain rates being offered. This could be a lasting trend.</p>
<p>"Luxury cruising now has a whole new energy in it," says Carolyn Spencer Brown, editor of Cruise Critic, an online cruise magazine. "A lot of people make decent pay and prize a good experience." That's what they get when they sail on the luxury lines, she says, so many won't want to go back to a lower level.</p>
<p>"History shows that if you get people to try" the luxury lifestyle, says Seabourn's president, Pam Conover, "their satisfaction is so high that they come back. We have found that two-thirds of our passengers repeat within two years."</p>
<p>But not everyone believes younger passengers lured by discounts will stick with upscale cruising once prices go back up.</p>
<p>Cruise expert Stewart Chiron thinks discounts are simply giving younger, less affluent guests the opportunity to take a once-in-a-lifetime trip.</p>
<p>Indeed, many of those travelers, he says, may be turning instead to so-called premium lines such as Celebrity, Oceania and Azamara that offer service and dining upgrades above mass-market ships but aren't as expensive or as pampering as luxury players Seabourn, Silversea, <span style="color: #29375a;">Regent Seven Seas</span>, Sea Dream and <span style="color: #29375a;">Crystal Cruises</span>.</p>
<p>The premium lines also have lowered their fares.</p>
<p>Even with discounts, luxury cruising is not cheap. But it certainly is more affordable with these discounts for passengers who can step up to true luxury style. Some fares have been reduced as much as 65 percent and on certain cruise dates may even dip below $300 per person per day. Added incentives such as free airfare can cut costs even more. (Mainstream lines such as Carnival, Royal Caribbean and Norwegian have been offering fares around $100 a day per person.)</p>
<p>With one more new luxury ship coming online this year and two others in the next two years, the deals are expected to continue, says Mike Driscoll, editor of the Cruise Week newsletter, which tracks cruising trends. Silversea, for one, has been selling 2010 cruises at 60 percent off with free air, the first time that line has ever made that kind of offer. One caution: As bookings fill up, cruise lines will raise prices and reduce or eliminate other incentives.</p>
<p>Not all luxury lines, however, are convinced price-cutting is the best way to go in this difficult economy.</p>
<p>"The big debate is whether to cut rates and sail full, or to keep rates up and sail half full," says Driscoll. The fear is that making luxury cruising cheaper will drive away the lines' loyal, more affluent client base.</p>
<p>Crystal Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises say they're relying more on "added values" to attract passengers, even while offering lower fares. "Added values" is a catchall term for extra incentives such as free air travel, onboard credits and free shore excursions.</p>
<p>"It's hit a chord," says Mark Conroy, president of Regent, which has been offering free air travel and free shore excursions as well as two-for-one fares. "We sold out in Alaska, and we're sold out in Europe since July."</p>
<p>"Added value is the way we see guests leaning," said Nitsa Lewis, Crystal's vice president of marketing. Crystal, the only luxury line whose fares don't cover gratuities and alcoholic beverages, has been offering savings up to $1,500 plus onboard credits of up to $2,000 per couple, and passengers can choose how to spend those credits &ndash; on those tips and bar bills, or on spa treatments, boutiques or excursions.</p>
<p>The new luxury liners are the first to be built in six years. Seabourn's 450-passenger Odyssey sailed on its maiden voyage in July. Silversea Cruises' 540-passenger Silver Spirit enters service in December, and Seabourn is adding new ships also in 2010 and 2011. All are larger than the line's current vessels.</p>
<p>Another factor favoring the movement toward a younger, more active clientele: The new ships are incorporating more features attractive to that age group.</p>
<p>"Seabourn Odyssey is the first luxury ship in a decade designed for younger passengers, and by younger I mean under 50," says Brown. Ninety percent of Seabourn's Odyssey suites have verandas, and it now offers more seven-night itineraries, which Conover says appeal especially to busy younger travelers. It has the largest spa on a luxury ship, a sun deck with sports facilities and four restaurants.</p>
<p>This year's other new luxury ship, Silver Spirit, will have a supper club and Asian restaurant among its six dining venues, as well as a spa and fitness center. Ninety-five percent of staterooms will have verandas.</p>
<p>As for the bottom line, both revenue and yields have taken a hit in these tough times. But as they did after 9/11, cruise fares are expected to rebound when the economy strengthens. Then watch those deals and discounts fade away.</p>
<p><em>Jay Clarke is a freelance writer in Florida.</em></p>
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