MORE than 40 new cruise ships worth $10bn will be built in the first five years of this millennium, according to the latest figures from the Passenger Shipping Association.
Eleven of the new vessels will be launched this year, including P&O Cruises’ superliner, Aurora, which has been built specifically for the British market.
The number of UKpassengers taking an ocean cruise in 2000 is expected to increase by 6% on 1999’s record figure of 706,000, according to the PSA.
Director Bill Gibbons said:”Fewer than 200,000 people took an ocean cruise at the beginning of this decade, and by 2000 the number of people cruising will have quadrupled.
“Obviously as the industry grows in size the percentage increases will reduce.
“Next year we expect 6% growth, partly due to success in the tour operator segment which has grown rapidly since 1995 to around 275,000 passengers in 1999. Growth among the other cruise companies remains very strong.”
He added:”There is still huge potential to increase the number of people who cruise, as only 1% of Britons currently take a cruise.”
“The major investment in new ships and routes offered by cruiselines will help to encourage more people to try cruising for the first time. We still find that once people have taken a cruise they are hooked.” Other new vessels due to be launched next year are Silversea Cruises’ luxury 388-passenger ship Silver Shadow, Carnival Cruise Lines’ 3,000-passenger vessel Carnival Victory and Costa Cruises’ 2,000-passenger vessel Costa Atlantica.
First Choice will expand its fleet to two ships for summer 2000 with the introduction of Ausonia, on charter fromLouis Cruise Lines.
Following a complete refurbishment, the ship will operate cruises from the UKto Cyprus calling at Athens, Egypt and the Holy Land.