Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd (NCLH), the world third largest cruise shipping group, has reported strong figures for both the third quarter and the first nine months of the year on strong demand.

Net profit rose to $470.4 million in the third quarter from $400.7 million year on as EBIT increased to $550 .3 million from $476.3 million. Revenues rose to $1.86 billion from $1.65 billion.

In the January-September period, the net profit of the company reached $800.2 million compared to $661.0 million year on, while EBIT reached $1.00 billion from $871.6 million and revenues climbed to $4.67 billion from $4.15 billion.

“Our three brands fully benefited from strong demand for peak summer season sailings, with particular strength in premium-priced itineraries in Alaska and Europe, resulting in the highest quarterly revenue and earnings in our history,” said Mark A. Kempa, executive vice president and chief financial officer.

In the third quarter, total cruise operating expense increased 10.8% compared to 2017 primarily due to an increase in capacity days.  Gross cruise costs per capacity day increased 4.0% due to higher marketing, general and administrative expenses. Adjusted net cruise cost excluding Fuel per capacity day increased 2.0% on a constant currency basis and 2.1% on an as reported basis.