A survey has found that a large majority of luxury passengers expect the cruise industry to make significant progress on sustainability over the coming decades.

A total of 69 per cent stated that the development of zero-emission ships is either fairly likely or very likely by 2050, according to the latest Mundy Cruising cruise expert panel.

However, even with the progress on more environmentally friendly ships, Mundy’s survey shows that 70 per cent expect ships to be banned from Antarctica within the next 30 years.

Just 32 per cent expect to see the world’s first 10,000-passenger cruise ship by 2050. Furthermore, 67 per cent believe Covid-19 will be eradicated worldwide within the next 30 years.

On a more general travel overview, just over half of the panel (54 per cent) think that commercial space travel will become a reality in the next few decades.

Mundy Cruising managing director Edwina Lonsdale said: “Although some of these predictions may seem fanciful, it is perhaps under-appreciated just how much the cruise industry is doing on sustainability.

“We are already seeing the roll-out of hybrid-powered ships by the likes of Hurtigruten and Ponant, along with cutting-edge technology to reduce emissions such as Ulstein’s X-Bow design, which has been embraced by Aurora Expeditions, Lindblad Expeditions and others.

“Here in the UK, we’ve also seen the recent announcement of a new cruise terminal at Southampton with shoreside power connectivity, allowing ships to ‘plug in’ while in port rather than running their engines.

“As for space travel, well, who knows? Given how well-travelled and adventurous our clients are, we’re not surprised that some of them are now eyeing the stars.”

The previous Mundy Cruising survey focused on the development of Covid-19 vaccines, with just under half reporting that they would only cruise once they had been vaccinated and the majority of the population had been vaccinated.