Cruise industry 'benefiting from economy'

The cruise industry is benefiting from the current economic situation, as holidaymakers are attracted by its all-inclusive nature, one expert has said.

According to the Passenger Shipping Association (PSA), one in every 12 package holidays now booked is a cruise break compared with one in 26 back in 1999.

This revelation follows statistics published by the PSA earlier this year, which found that there has been an 18 per cent increase of cruises being booked by UK passengers who chose to cruise for longer in 2008.

Furthermore, there was an 11 per cent increase in the third successive year of growth for the UK market, bringing it to the brink of 1.5 million cruise passengers.

William Gibbons, director of the Passenger Shipping Association, said: "Cruising has certainly become more of a mainstream holiday.

"In fact, 15 years ago, cruising was more a niche holiday and maybe something people aspired to when they retired, or for their 25th wedding anniversary or something like that. Now more and more people are taking cruises as their main holidays every year as they are more affordable and they have become better known."

He added that travel agents, which are where most cruise holidays are sold, are now offering a much wide range of products, from all-inclusive deals that offer one price for food, travel and entertainment, to themed cruises.

The PSA's research shows that the Mediterranean is the favourite cruise destination for Brits, while northern and western Europe are also burgeoning markets, overtaking the Caribbean to secure second place in the popularity ranks.

However, 40 per cent of cruises booked in Britain start at a UK port and experts predict that this figure will rise in 2010 when three new ships are introduced in Southampton.

Mr Gibbons stressed the financial advantages of taking a cruise given the economic climate.

He said: "I think certainly, in the economic situation, cruising has got a big advantage because of its all inclusive nature and its value so you can budget much better by paying up front. If you take a two week cruise, you have paid for all your meals."

A survey conducted for Carnival UK's Cruise Report 2009, which was published earlier this year, revealed that Brits' main concern when booking breaks is not watching their pennies, despite the credit crunch.

Nearly three quarters of Brits said they planned to spend as much on their holiday in 2009 as they did in 2008, if not more - this percentage rose in the 45 to 54-year-old age bracket.

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