Even with all of the recent troubles for the Carnival Cruise Line, CEO and a mogul in the cruise industry, Micky Arison, has been raked No. 211 on Forbes' annual ranking of the world's billionaires with a net worth of $5.7 billion.
This rise in net worth comes despite recent highly-publicized incidents, like the Triumph, in which passengers claim to have suffered severe dehydration when the ship caught fire, resulting in nearly two weeks stranded at sea, and last January's crash of the Costa Concordia in Rome, that cast, not only his cruise line, but the industry, in general, in a negative light.
Arison's worth, which, according to USA Today, is heavily tied to his hefty stake in Carnival stock, has nearly doubled from four years ago, when cruise stocks were plunging along with the economy and Forbes pegged his wealth at just $2.9 billion.
Even with this elevation, according to Forbes, he still isn't close to his ranking in 2006, which saw him being among the 100 richest people in the world, sitting at No. 94.
His other rankings on the list include No. 129 in 2007, No. 221 in 2009 and No. 169 in 2011.
USA Today points out that he isn't the only Arison whose fortunes are rebounding. Another Carnival heir, Shari Arison, is now worth $4.2 billion, up from $3.4 billion just three years ago, according to Forbes. She now ranks at No. 308 on the list. That said, seven years ago she also was within striking distance of the Top 100 at 109.
Founded by the Arison family in 1972 with a single ship, Carnival Corp. has grown into the world's largest cruise company. It operates nearly 100 vessels spread among 10 brands including Carnival, Princess, Holland America and Cunard, according to USA Today.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
