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Confidence in cruising is sinking, shows poll
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CLIA has disputed the findings of a recent poll which showed that confidence in the cruise market is sinking.
A Harris online poll of over 2,000 US adults conducted in February found double-digit falls in quality, trust and perception of cruise travel compared to a year ago.
Respondents were polled on their perception of seven major cruise lines.
Scores in quality, trust and perception dropped 11%, 12% and 13% respectively following several months of high profile norovirus outbreaks and the Carnival Triumph incident.
The most potentially damaging aspect of the poll came from the key new-to-cruise segment.
A total of 58% of consumers who have never taken a cruise said they are less likely to do so now compared to a year ago.
The poll said 59% of consumers believe air travel to be more reliable and 54% think flying is a safer option than cruising.
"In a field as crowded as the cruise industry, bad press can have negative repercussions for major players across the board," said Deana Percassi, public relations consultant for Harris parent company Nielsen.
However, CLIA said "The Harris Poll does not reflect what CLIA is hearing, which is that bookings are solid and cruise ships are leaving full."
CLIA said that at the recent cruise3sixty conference in the US, which is the largest for US travel agents, confidence remained high.
"Reports from travel agents are that consumer interest in cruising remains high. Travel agents also report increasing numbers of first-time cruisers," said a spokesman.
"While the poll focuses on norovirus, such incidents on cruise ships are very low and almost all norovirus outbreaks occur on land.
"In 2013, there were 3 norovirus outbreaks on cruise ships departing from U.S. Ports involving a total of 706 passengers. By contrast, the CDC reports there are up to 21 million norovirus cases in a typical year in the United States. To put that into perspective, approximately 10.1 million passengers embarked on CLIA member cruise ships from a US port in 2012 so this figure represents approximately 0.007% of passengers."
The release of the survey comes in the wake of a suspected norovirus outbreak aboard the Crown Princess.
Princess Cruises said a least 80 passengers so far have reported norovirus-like symptoms and were being isolated.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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