Objectives   To understand the impact of the SOLAS 2020 damaged stability requirements on cruise ship design, accurately grasp the impact of design modification on the design cycle and construction cost, an investigation of upgrading solutions of cruise ships to meet new damaged stability requirements is carried out.

  Methods   Through the analysis of SOLAS 2020's damaged stability requirements, the present situation of the subdivision index level and alternative upgrading solutions of cruise ships are put forward. The effects of these solutions and the influence on cruise ships are analyzed respectively.

  Results   Taking an operating cruise ship as an example, upgrades are carried out to meet SOLAS 2020 damaged stability requirements.

  Conclusions  The results show that SOLAS 2020 greatly improves the damaged stability requirements of passenger ships and will have a significant impact on the development of cruise ships. An optimized scheme can provide technical support for the upgrade of cruise ships in China.