More than 1.53 million people took a cruise in 2009, up 4% on 2008, according to statistics from the Passenger Shipping Association. The figures, released today, show a 7% increase in the number of people joining their cruise in a UK port while the number of fly-cruise passengers increased by 2%. William Gibbons, PSA director, said: “The UK cruise industry proved resilient in 2009 despite the very difficult economic climate and much of this success can be attributed to the all-inclusive nature of cruising and the very high standards of quality and service. “These are values intrinsic to cruising and will continue to encourage greater numbers of passengers, with the PSA predicting 1.65m Brits taking a cruise holiday in 2010.” Last year 594,000 passengers took an ex-UK port cruise and 939,000 a fly-cruise. The Mediterranean is still the most popular destination with 595,000 passengers and a 39% share of the market. Northern Europe, including the UK, and the Caribbean came second and third with 295,000 and 275,000 passengers respectively. More than 16,000 UK passengers took a Round Britain cruise. Gibbons added: “There are 14 new ship launches this year bringing capacity for an additional 28,000 passenger berths. We predict the number of Brits taking a cruise holiday will grow to 1.75m passengers.” The PSA has four new cruise members, Shearings Holidays, Hapag-Lloyd Cruises, Compagnie du Ponant and Voyages to Antiquity, bringing the number of cruise brands to 42. Gibbons added: “I’m delighted that cruise lines continue to value the contribution the PSA makes in representing members’ interests. It is particularly pleasing to see numbers grow despite a period of recession.”
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