Feb 27 (Reuters) - Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings forecast a first-quarter profit on Tuesday betting on higher ticket prices and steady demand in the U.S. for cruises to the Caribbean and Europe.

The company's shares rose 5.5% to $16.80 in premarket trading.

Cruise operators are now experiencing record levels of bookings in 2024 as travelers look to spend on novel experiences and are choosing cruises over land-based alternatives such as hotels or theme parks.

This has given companies including Carnival Corp and Royal Caribbean more room to hike prices on their itineraries and offset still-high labor and fuel costs.

Norwegian Cruise forecast an adjusted profit of 12 cents per share for the first quarter, compared with analysts' estimates of a loss of 20 cents per share, according to LSEG data.

The company's fourth-quarter revenue rose to $1.99 billion from $1.52 billion a year earlier. Analysts had expected $1.97 billion. (Reporting by Granth Vanaik and Ananya Mariam Rajesh in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta)