A report commissioned by CLIA has found that the cruise industry contributed a huge €10.4 billion to the UK economy in 2017.

The UK figure, detailed in a report by the Business Research & Economic Advisors (BREA), represents around 22 per cent of the industry’s total output across Europe.

A total of 1,094,000 cruise passengers embarked on a cruise from UK ports, an increase of 34,000 from 2015. More than 80 per cent of departures were from Southampton.

The UK also experienced growth in ports-of-call visits, with 1,415,000 passengers visiting a UK port in 2017, up 39 per cent from 2015.

The most visited British port was Invergordon, Scotland, with an estimated 134,000 cruise passengers going ashore.

Andy Harmer, CLIA UK & Ireland director, said: “The figures released today bear testament to the cruise industry continuing to make significant contributions to the UK’s economy and the multi-billion valuation shows that cruise is a major player within the travel sector.”

UK employment generated by the cruise industry is also up, with an estimated 82,410 Britons directly and indirectly employed, up from 73,919 in 2015.

Harmer added: “The success of the global cruise industry is set to continue with 24 new ships scheduled to launch in 2019 and 107 new ships on order for delivery before 2027, worth close to $60 billion.

“As the cruise industry’s confidence in the UK increases, so does the number of ships built for the UK market.

“P&O Cruises’ Iona, the largest ever cruise ship built for the British market with capacity of over 5,200 passengers, will launch in 2020. And Cunard revealed last year that it is building what will be the largest cruise ship in its history, with the 3,000-passenger ship joining the iconic fleet in 2022.

“Furthermore, just this month Celebrity Cruises announced that its second Edge-class ship, Celebrity Apex, will be christened in Southampton in 2020 and sail a mini-season in the UK. The ship will join Celebrity Silhouette, marking the first time the line has operated two ships in the UK.”