Cruise ‘mother ships’ which can launch fleets of smaller vessels and more space-efficient ferries are the future, according to the Passenger Shipping Association.
Futuristic designs of how ships could look were revealed at the launch of the PSA’s Annual Cruise Report last night at London’s National Maritime Museum as the number of cruise passengers is predicted to hit two million by 2012.
The ships were designed by Fredik Johansson, senior architect for Tillberg Design AB, which created the QE2 and QM2, Independence of the Seas, Crystal Serenity and various Disney ships.
He said: “The new generation of ferries and cruise ships will have a distinct identity throughout. They are aimed at the next generation of youthful, design-savvy and environmentally conscioius passenger who we are now seeing entering the market.”
The PSA, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary, predicts cruise holidays will grow from 1.33 million British passengers in 2007 to 1.5 million this year.
Growth in 2007 was in the ultra-luxury cruise sector, specialist cruising and in UK departures and ports of call. The number of ex-UK cruises have increased by 48% since 2004 compared with a 22% increase in fly-cruises, according to the Annual Cruise Review.