The annual Carnival UK report released last week is packed with interesting facts. Here are a few of the best:
- Princess Cruises carried more than 100,000 British passengers for the first time in 2007 and saw more growth in 2008 - all without any big marketing campaigns. Bodes well given Princess has a bigger ship, Grand Princess, based in Southampton this summer.
- Carnival Cruise Lines' sales grew almost 80% in 2008 compared to 2007 as a result of Carnival Splendor's season from Dover. Sadly, that turned out to be a one-off, at least while air fares stay high and money is tight.
- Costa Cruises has become a force in the honeymoon market due to its cruises from Mauritius. But don't send anyone looking for a traditional British cruise, UK managing director Marco Rosa warns.
- Passengers on Cunard's Queen Mary 2 managed to get through 97,000 pounds of lobster and 206,200 bottles of Champagne.
- Nearly three quarters of British holidaymakers are planning to spend at least as much on their main holiday this year as they did in 2008.
But the one that really caught my eye was that Ocean Village has replaced its plastic laundry bags with linen ones. Environment and all that.
All very laudable, but it occurs to me that the line's happy green thoughts will turn to seeing red when the linen bags start to walk off the ship.
Especially after I heard the story recently of a woman taking a long cruise on a luxury ship - no names, but it is true - who seemed to be getting through rather a lot of the lotions and shampoos you find in suites on classy lines.
The officer in charge of these things was getting a little worried - we might think it's a freebie, but this top-brand stuff apparently costs the cruiselines a lot of money. They had a look around the passengers' suite to try to find out what was happening and found a suitcase containing the bottles. Not just with 10 or 20, you understand, but full.
Brings a whole new meaning to the concept of money laundering.
Jane Archer
