Before Arison and Kloster gambled that they could sell pleasure cruises to tourists, cruise ships were used primarily for transportation. The ocean liners of the late 1800s and early 1900s can be seen as the predecessors for modern day cruise ships. In the words of maritime historian John Maxtone-Graham, ocean liners were "the only way to cross" in their time. At the beginning of the 20th century, ocean liners became "not only means of transportation, but also great symbols for their nations."

The Titanic on its first and only voyage.

Companies like the Cunard Line (who owned the Lusitania) or the White Star Line (who owned the Titanic) began competing for passengers and prestige by adding luxurious features to their crossings. Upper-class white passengers who could afford these indulgences paid extra for decadent food, accommodations, and entertainment.
Crossing the Atlantic was no longer a purely functional undertaking. The experience of the crossing became equally important for those who could afford to pay extra. The effect of the companies' competition was the creation of a symbolic economy in which the affluent paid more for the use value of their voyage than the exchange value. Although this symbolic economy of cruising was essentially halted by two world wars, aspects of it would reemerge when the Sunward set sail from Miami, and a new economy of cruise ships was created.

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The lavish interior of the Lusitania.

Sources:

http://www.greatoceanliners.net/index2.html