Cruise ships are big hotels that go from place to place. What about mooring some of them semi permanently near places that people really want to visit but don’t yet have tourist infrastructure. Places like Ghana, the Amazon, Papaua, New Guinea or Sub Sarahan Africa. The people could fly to the hotels and have a safe controlled place to use as their home base as they explored. The countries involved would rather have hotel built in their territory but fancy hotel are difficult to finance in third world countries. On the other hand they have figured out the financing for cruise ships.

Moored hotels would be better than cruising because they would allow the tourists to see an area in more details. People who don’t like the idea of sailing would be able to go places that are still different. It would be as safe and predictable as a cruise ship but would allow one to really explore another culture. And the least developed parts of the world would get opportunities for jobs and development.

As the idea of floating resort hotels gained credibility it will be possible to build them on huge floating barges greatly increasing the Resort feel and ambiance. This will happen and it will in a small way change the world. It might be time to invest in the most progressive of the cruise ship operators or hotel companies.