ITTN’s Shane Cullen and Sharon Jordan joined media representatives at a CLIA UK & Ireland lunch hosted by managing director, Andy Harmer. The focus was CLIA Cruise Week which will take place from September 16th to 22nd. This year’s theme is #DiscoverMore.
Andy Harmer Hosts Lunch in Dublin
Andy Harmer (Managing Director of CLIA, UK & Ireland), Kay Greenway (Director of Cruise Britain) and Julie Green (Deputy Director, Strategic Communications – Europe, CLIA) hosted a lunch for members of the Irish media.
Andy Harmer schools us in all things cruise. Andy explains, “We had a record year in the UK and Ireland last year. It was a record year by some measure with 2.3 million cruises from the UK and Ireland.”
Andy shared that the Ireland portion of 2023 was just under 60,000 Irish guests which again was a record by some measure compared to 2022. What’s interesting is the UK and Ireland numbers have recovered faster than other parts of the world which is great.
The United States is still very strong and growing very quickly. Germany is still the second-biggest source market in the world. Within that figure, Andy explained, there are some trends worth pointing out. The average age of cruisers came down again. The average age of a cruiser from the UK and Ireland was 55 years of age. This is a year lower than in 2022. Andy’s view was this is an ongoing trend and that cruising covers all demographics. This is driven by certain cruise companies specifically targeting the younger market, more family-focused cruises and an increase in multi-generational cruises.
In 2024, 28% of all cruises were cruising in a group made up of three generations or more. While covid saw this segment grow significantly, this is a trend that has continued emphasising the importance of the multi-generational market.
Andy explains “Some of the reasons that we all know are, if you’re on a cruise you know that there’s something that the grandparents would do, something for the parents, something for the kids. What cruisers have is a great experience where you can pick what you want to do each day, whether it’s onboard or a shore and they all meet up for lunch and dinner.”
Q1 2024 figures show an increase of 43% year-on-year compared with the same period last year. This shows the continued remarkable growth and interest in cruising. This is based on guests who have travelled (i.e. not just travel sentiment).
Andy shared, if someone has cruised, 82% of cruisers will book another cruise within a year and will travel within 2 years. Also, for people who have never stepped onto a ship before who are international travellers, 71% of those are ready to cruise and that’s where CLIA’s travel agent partners come into play shares Andy. This is a key segment in terms of how to grow the Irish cruise market.
Ireland & the UK as a Destination
2023 was the best year to date in terms of the UK and Ireland as a destination. 2.6 million people stepped ashore across the UK and Ireland. In terms of consumer nationality, just over a third came from North America and a further quarter from Germany, highlighting the strength of the German source markets. In addition, c.20-25% are British and Irish touring their own region with the remainder “rest of the world”.
There is a trend of increase in expedition-style ships, the small to midsize ships sailing to the coastline of the UK and Ireland both in terms of using the destination as a base and also as a stop on route to elsewhere. While initially not seen as an obvious fit with expeditions, this market offers a softer and more luxurious expedition offering compared with the likes of the Antarctic. This has been a strategic focus in partnership with the ports and destinations to encourage operators to see the region as a whole and thus driving the growth in this market segment.
Mediterranean Remains Top Destination for Irish & British
In terms of destination to which UK and Irish guests travelled, this remains largely unchanged with the most popular destination being the Mediterranean. This represented c.40% of all UK & Irish travellers. Northern Europe as a whole is the second most popular destination. Third is the Atlantic islands which include the Canaries and Madeira. Fourth is winter sun in the Caribbean which represents 12% of the market.
Highlighting the allure, the Caribbean offers a different island every day, sunshine, a cold glass of wine and offers lots of brand-new cruise ships.
UK & Irish Guests – 53% Increase in Expedition Cruising
Irish and UK guests who travelled on expedition cruises increased by 53% in 2023 – this only captures Antarctica, the Arctic and the Galapagos. This does not include soft expeditions to the likes of Iceland etc.
Decision Waterfall for Holiday Bookings
Andy shared that consumers first decide on their destination. Thereafter, the biggest competitor to the cruise sector is an all-inclusive resort. Given that cruises tend to be one of the most inclusive types of holiday, Andy highlighted that it is a good swap over for new-to-cruise holiday-makers.
CLIA Cruise Week & #DiscoverMore
CLIA Cruise Week is an annual event and this year will see a host of trade-friendly activities and initiatives, supported by consumer outreach made available throughout the seven days.
Cruise Week‘s focus on the #DiscoverMore destination theme, which was also a feature across CLIA’s Conference in May, allows the whole industry to showcase cruise destinations, as well as the experiences available whilst in port.
CLIA will use the week to share information and insights on destinations though expert interviews, webinars and live broadcasts. CLIA will work across its member cruise lines to bring trade incentives, offers and news, supported by a host of social media activities, with shareable content and a focus on a different daily destination.
CLIA Destination Showcase in Gibraltar
CLIA will also be hosting its Destination Showcase in Gibraltar during that week, providing a perfect platform to engage travel agents in destination experiences.
CLIA’s Showcase will again head overseas in Autumn 2024, and this time to the southernmost tip of the Iberian peninsula, as they host an immersive cruise event in the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar. Cruise guests visiting the Port of Gibraltar continue to be drawn by the limestone Rock which dominates the scenery. From history, architecture and art to wildlife and outdoor experiences, Gibraltar offers plenty to travellers.
Destination education will play a key role throughout the event, with business sessions covering this topic as well as the invitation to join local tours and excursions in Gibraltar itself. Delegates will also be welcomed to two ship tours at the Port, with all delegates visiting both Holland America Line’s Nieuw Statendam and Azamara Quest as part of the event.
The Showcase will be hosted in conjunction with Visit Gibraltar, the marketing brand of the Gibraltar Tourist Board. There will be preferential rates for your hotel accommodation in the city. The full programme commences with a welcome reception, early evening on Sunday 15 September. The Conference programme closes with a Farewell Dinner on Tuesday 17 September for travel home on Wednesday 18 September. Travel to/from Gibraltar, accommodation and personal expenditures during the event are at the arrangement and expense of individual attendees.
For more, check out https://cruising.org/en-gb/events/2024/september/clia-gibraltar—destination-showcase-2024
