Clia MD says long-haul cruise bookings ‘coming back’

Long-haul cruise bookings are starting to see an upturn after a post-pandemic lag, according to Clia UK & Ireland managing director Andy Harmer.

Speaking at the Clia Destination Showcase in Gibraltar, Harmer (pictured) said Europe continued to dominate bookings in 2023, with 35% of cruises in the Mediterranean, 29% in Northern Europe and 10% in the Canary Islands.

But he said both ocean and river cruise passengers were increasingly looking for more exotic and lengthy “bucket list and exploration destinations” and said long-haul bookings were “coming back”.

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Of the 26% of bookings not covered by Europe and the Canary Islands, 12% were to the Caribbean and the remaining 14% were to destinations including Alaska, Asia, Australasia and Southern America.

Harmer singled out The Galapagos Islands and Borneo, which were proving “very popular” for expedition cruise, while Colombia, the Amazon, the Nile and the Ganges were “doing very well” for river cruise.

He added: “Long-haul Asia is performing very well now, South America is performing very well, so look out for some of those longer haul destinations, because there’s growing interest.”

He also added Japan as “a great cruising destination” which is proving “very popular this year”.

Harmer also told delegates to make the most of resources on Clia’s website when building their cruises business.

These included its virtual ship tours, with 12 new additions this year taking the total available to 24, downloadable guides, training and details of Clia members trade activity, promotions and incentives.