Almost 700,000 British holidaymakers took their first cruise last year, many of them leaving from a UK port, according to figures compiled by the Passenger Shipping Association (PSA).
While the number of Brits booking a holiday abroad was the lowest this century, they took a record 1.7 million cruises. One in every eight package holidays booked is now a cruise; nine years ago, the figure was one in 25.
While retail prices were rising at about five per cent, the price paid for a cruise rose by less than one per cent – the average fare was up from £1,421 to £1,434.
The number of passengers choosing to begin their holidays at Southampton, Dover, or other British ports rose by 100,000 to 753,000. If the trend continues, half of British passengers will join their cruise ship in a UK port within three years – or even earlier now that Royal Caribbean plans to base the 3,114-passenger Adventure of the Seas in Southampton next summer.
Almost half of all cruises booked are now of seven nights or less, and the Mediterranean continues to be the favourite destination. Voyages to the Canaries are up by almost a fifth, and to Norway by 30 per cent. But 34,000 fewer flew to join cruises in the Caribbean, no doubt deterred by the rise in Air Passenger Duty and the cost of flights.
PSA director Bill Gibbons says “exceptional value, high standards, and choice of destination” have contributed to the continuing growth in cruise numbers. The increased costs of fly-cruise holidays have led to more people joining their cruise at one of the UK’s 50 ports. The sheer diversity of the cruise market means there is a holiday for everyone.”
The figures show that 2011 recorded a five per cent increase in overall numbers, and an eight per cent leap in winter escapes on ultra-luxury cruises.
►The report was released this week at an event that also included the presentation of the PSA’s first Cruise Journalism Awards. Congratulations to Jane Archer for collecting the top “Contribution to Cruise Journalism” prize. I was fortunate enough to be Highly Commended in the “Gourmet Cruise” category, for my piece Dining Room With A View published in the Sunday Mirror in September, about a cruise on Holland America’s Eurodam with TV chef Valentine Warner.[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]
The popularity of cruises from the UK, especially those departing from Southampton continues to grow at such a fast rate.
This is evidenced by the announcement just over a year ago regarding Southampton’s new T5 cruise terminal and more recently Liverpool’s proposal for a cruise terminal.