Norwegian Cruise Line CEO Kevin Sheehan said Wave season bookings are similar to those reported earlier this month by Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.
"It's in the twenty-percentage zone," Sheehan said of the year-over-year improvement from 2012.
In a conference call with analysts, he said the year started slowly because Christmas and New Year's fell on a Tuesday, but activity has since improved.
The jump doesn't take into account favorable comparisons caused by the dramatic drop in bookings last year after the Costa Concordia crash on Jan. 13, 2012.
Sheehan said it is still early, but said European bookings aren't notably different from domestic ones.
In its call with analysts, Royal Caribbean said that domestic bookings looked stronger than in some European countries, notably Spain and the U.K.
Asked if there was pricing power in Europe, Sheehan said it is way too early to tell.
Follow Tom Stieghorst on Twitter @tstravelweekly.