Doom and gloom in the cruise industry as summer holidays approach? On the contrary, according to many travel agents.
It seems that more and more people are realising what good value a cruise holiday offers them.
Helene Blass, as leading cruise specialist told me “If you think about it, a trip round the Med for a week, visiting great places, with basically as much food as you want virtually around the clock, excellent entertainment – there is always something going on – and a free club for children, all for well under £900. It is pretty good value!”
The simple fact is that before the recession was even a tiny niggle of doubt in any city investor’s mind, 11 new cruise ships were commissioned for launch this year. This includes the enormous Oasis of the Seas with a capacity of 5,400 guests. As a result, deals are waiting to be grabbed. These range from pounds off, to offers of credit onboard, numerous opportunities for free cabin upgrades right across the board and hotel stays before or after your cruise.
I spoke to Marco Rosa, Managing Director of Costa Cruises who explained “With the weak pound rendering foreign travel prohibitively expensive for Brits, cruising represents even better value for money than ever before. With most holiday costs included, passengers only need to budget for spending money while on-shore” So the core price isn’t affected by the pound’s decline.
He went to explain “Cruising is the perfect way to enjoy the best of travelling abroad – basking in the sunshine, visiting exciting new cities and exploring new countries – without having to worry about the exchange rate.
Sue Leapman is a devotee of cruising, and is holidaying again with Royal Caribbean in July. “When you compare it to a 4 star hotel in Europe with excellent food and a West End Show every night, in fact something for everybody, well you just can’t match that for value. It came especially into its own when the children were small and they could roam around from one organised activity to another with a great sense of freedom and at the same time, we as parents didn’t have to worry”.
Helene Blass agrees, citing yet another reason for the expansion in the industry. “The market for going to unusual places like Antarctica has grown, but it is a location where frankly it is really not feasible going on your own; a cruise really works well as a safe way of seeing the beauty. The same applies to places where vast distances are involved, such as South America. Travelling on a boat is so much simpler than taking lots of internal flights and at the same time passengers can take real advantage of the comfort found on board”
Related posts:
- Pound For Pound, Cruises Are The Recession-Proof Holiday Solution The travel industry is reporting ‘Positive levels’ of holiday...
- The Recession Bites…But Not At Sea With the upheaval of moving house I realised that...
- Lies, Damned Lies and Holiday Statistics There are lies, damned lies and statistics, according to...
- My Cruise Holiday By Melinda Messenger – Part 1 Hi all, this is Melinda Messenger. It’s the night...
- We’re all going on a summer cruise holiday I find it hard to believe that it’s almost...
Leave a Comment