Carnival, Royal Caribbean, and Norwegian Race Against the Summer

We keep getting closer to the long overdue return of the cruising industry. Royal Caribbean (NYSE: RCL) announced on Tuesday afternoon that its Freedom of the Seas ship has been approved to begin test sailings out of Miami by late June. It's the first of the country's three major cruise lines to announce a test sailing.

Earlier in the week it was Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings (NYSE: NCLH) getting the green light to begin Alaskan cruises out of Seattle in early August. Royal Caribbean and Carnival (NYSE: CCL) (NYSE: CUK) announced a July restart to their sea voyages to Alaska late last week. Yes, it's finally happening. If you've been waiting for more than a year to get on a cruise ship again the gangplank is going to be there for you soon. If you're just following the news because you're an investor in one of the three major cruise lines you might want to pare back your expectations. The cruise industry is coming back, but this summer -- for all practical purposes -- is essentially shot.

Image source: Getty Images.

Source Fool.com