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More families get on board as cruising broadens appeal
Cruising is broadening its appeal across generations as more families take to the seas, a new report shows.
The second annual Cruise Report from Carnival UK describes cruise holidays as the “latest aspirational choice” for families.
The company – parent of P&O Cruises, Cunard, Ocean Village and Princess Cruises – is gearing up to attract more families with a range of dedicated activities and amenities on new and existing ships.
Carnival UK managing director David Dingle revealed a 14% increase in the number of families taking cruises last year over 2005.
The report shows that P&O Cruises alone carried almost 10,000 children in 2006, about 1,000 more than the previous year.
And it predicts a further surge in 2008 when new family-friendly vessel Ventura is launched with features such as funpacks for children, MP3 players for teenagers, a partnership with the Early Learning Centre and regular appearances by children’s favourite Noddy.
Dingle said; “families are a critical part of the business, but probably the most discerning and so we, in turn, have made further enhancements to attract growing numbers of parents with young children who recognise that cruising is a holiday for the whole family and not a compromise for one or the other.</
“We have also seen a growth in the numbers of single parents travelling with children, while one partner works or is unable to take a holiday.”
He described cruises as proving their appeal across generations with cruise lines achieving record passenger carryings despite a difficult year for the travel industry in 2006. More growth is forecast with an additional 100,000 UK cruise passengers expected this year, taking the total to 1.35 million.
“Attracting first-timers is as important as maintaining the high level of repeat business in the growing market and cruise lines have responded to this by listening to the customer and enhancing the on board experience to cater for this younger, more savvy traveller,” said Dingle.
He added that while the cost of cruising has fallen in real terms, customer expectations have risen and the cruise experience has had to evolve accordingly.
Report by Phil Davies
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