As part of Plan a Cruise Month, the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) has asked the nation to share on social media their favourite cruise destination.

The UK Twitterati gave their verdict putting Europe in the top spot with 56 percent of the vote.

Nominations for Europe covered the entire continent, including four Italian cities making the shortlist – including Rome, Venice, Pompeii and Tuscany.

Mainland Greece and its islands also fared well, mirroring land holiday trends and demonstrating the destination still has pulling power despite recent economic issues.

Norway, a country that is a long established favourite with British cruisers, also featured on the list, with votes coming through for the Norwegian Fjords while the UK, with votes for circumnavigation cruises and Northumberland receiving a special mention.

Behind Europe, CLIA recorded a joint second with both North America and the Caribbean coming in at 18 percent.

Asia, a region that is opening up to the cruise market, with more options in Cambodia, Vietnam and Myanmar, received four percent.

CLIA UK and Ireland Director Andy Harmer commented: “A cruise holiday really is your passport to the world! With nearly 1.8 million people in the UK choosing to cruise in 2015, CLIA’s Cruise Line Members offer the best itineraries to every corner of the world, meaning that choosing a favourite cruise place came as no easy task!”

“We are excited to see Europe at the top; this emulates statistics from our Cruise Review in March 2016 which showed that the Mediterranean specifically, was the most popular holiday choice for Brits, accounting for 672,000 passengers in 2015.

The results also supports the notion that UK sailings, many of which visit Europe, are hugely appealing to the British consumer. In fact, cruises from the UK now account for 47 percent of the market (840,000 UK passengers in 2015).”