At various industry events in recent months, much has been made of the growth in the cruise industry, from increasing passenger numbers to a plethora of new ships entering the market. As one example, back in April, CLIA said that its latest research showed that the UK cruise industry is “innovating, diversifying and attracting new holidaymakers”.

The association revealed that holidaymakers from the UK and Ireland took approximately 1.7 million cruises in 2022, nearing demand levels last seen in 2019, and 70 per cent of those who have never cruised before would now consider a cruise in the next few years, up from 68 per cent in mMarch 2022, according to the data.

General chats with industry execs and more formal survey findings have reinforced these findings; so much so that it’s almost impossible to find a cruise line today that is not experiencing some sort of growth. But what are the underlying reasons for this positive news? We take a look in our latest investigation.

Elsewhere, we sail on Viking Venus in search of the northern lights and highlight some of the on-board areas on Resilient Lady, the latest ship from Virgin Voyages. Ambassador Cruise Line divisional sales manager Karen Cameron also discusses why its quality, not quantity, that’s needed when it comes to in-store visits and training.

Destination-wise, we analyse the itineraries on offer in South America, which represents a great selling opportunity, and chat to Celebrity Cruises UK and Ireland sales director Claire Stirrup about Celebrity Ascent, the fourth Edge ship, and much more.

Enjoy the issue.