Cruise Line Tycoon Fuel & Route Planner

Running out of fuel mid-route in Cruise Line Tycoon is rarely bad luck—it is usually a planning skip. Propulsion choice, hull mass, island distance, port fees, and forgotten reserves compound into emergencies that F refunds cannot fix while guests rate your voyage poorly. This fuel planner is a captain worksheet: write numbers before undocking, compare estimates to actual burn after return, and tighten assumptions over time.

Pair the worksheet with Fuel and Supplies for stocking rules and Islands Map for geography. Hull changes on Somnio Class, Aurora Class, or Imperial Class alter consumption—replan after every upgrade.

Step 1 — Define the voyage

Write explicit endpoints:

• Start port (often Qanaveral for practice or post-shipyard departures).
• Destination (examples: Nassau short hop, Cozumel long leg, Barcelona flagship run).
• Mission constraints — some objectives require intermediate stops; list them even if they feel inconvenient.

Example notation: Qanaveral → Palm Key → Cozumel → Qanaveral. Ambiguous routes hide missing legs.

Step 2 — Map mandatory stops

Mark resupply and shipyard visits on the chain:

Port	Role	Notes
Qanaveral	Starter hub + shipyard	Default learning loops
Nassau	Warm mid hop	Good Somnio testing
Seabrook	Practice port	Low-risk rating checks
Palm Key	Warm stop	Mission variety
Northaven	Mid map	Transition toward longer legs
Cozumel	Long-range	Stress test reserves
Whitecap Cove	Cold region	Pair with Aurora icebreaker routes
Hailmar	Cold hub + shipyard	Aurora 20% discount location
Barcelona	Major shipyard + long range	Imperial-scale planning
Maravela	Newer port	Verify patch additions

If a stop lacks fuel or supplies when you arrive, note the failure mode and add an earlier escape port next time.

Step 3 — Propulsion profile

Diesel setups dominate early play: familiar logistics, visible tanks, straightforward refuel stops. Nuclear propulsion—recent Alpha notes discuss output toward ~20 MW— trades different constraints: reactor space, crew skills, upfront build cost, reduced diesel anxiety on huge hulls.

Record which propulsion you run. Imperial captains eyeing nuclear should read Power and Propulsion before deleting working diesel mid-voyage.

Step 4 — Estimate consumption

You do not need fake precision. You need consistent guesses:

1. Record fuel at undock.
2. Guess burn per leg using past voyages on the same hull.
3. Sum legs plus idle buffer at ports (fees, delays, reroutes).
4. If guessing cold routes on Aurora Class, add extra margin until you have three logged runs.

Starter captains: log Qanaveral–Nassau–Qanaveral five times before attempting Cozumel.

Step 5 — Reserve policy

Never sail at 100% planned consumption. Reserves cover:

• Port fees higher than remembered.
• Mis-clicks and accidental detours.
• Patch tweaks between sessions.
• Guest rating emergencies forcing slower speeds (if mechanics apply on your build).

Suggested starting reserves:

• Beginner: 25–30% above estimated burn until logs exist.
• Intermediate: 15–20% on familiar loops.
• Experimental long range: 30%+ when trying Barcelona or Cozumel first time on a new hull.

Tight reserves feel efficient until they are not.

Step 6 — Go / no-go decision

If planned burn plus reserve exceeds capacity:

• Shorten the route (add a closer island).
• Insert a refuel stop you hoped to skip.
• Delay until tanks or propulsion upgrade.
• Run Rating Checklist—sometimes rating fixes reduce voyage waste.

Go only when margin is boring. Boring margins fund Ships Hub upgrades.

Post-voyage log

After docking, write:

• Actual fuel remaining.
• Longest leg burn.
• Surprises (fees, storms, UI bugs).

Compare to estimate. Adjust next worksheet. Captains who log data outperform captains who trust memory.

Special scenarios

Hailmar Aurora shopping. Plan fuel to arrive, buy hull, still return or continue cold loop with reserves—not empty tanks.

Barcelona maiden Imperial voyage. Treat first run as reconnaissance, not profit maxing.

Patch week. Re-read Updates before trusting old burn assumptions.

Planner limits

This tool does not replace live UI readouts. Alpha changes consumption silently sometimes. When estimates and reality diverge repeatedly, trust the game and update your personal chart.