Carnival Ship Order Highlights Cruise Sector Growth

Signs that the cruise industry is set for further growth have been highlighted by Carnival Corporation, which has announced that two new vessels will enter service in the next four years.

The company has placed an order with Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri for two new cruise ships for its Princess Cruises brand, which will both be capable of catering for 3,600 passengers.

Expected to start welcoming cruise lovers in the spring of 2013 and the spring of 2014, the 139,000-tonne luxury liners will be the largest vessels in Princess Cruises' fleet.

An increasing number of holidaymakers are now being attracted to cruising thanks to the launch of new ships and wider choice of itineraries to exotic destinations around the world.

The UK cruise industry is among those that have been expanding in recent times and the Passenger Shipping Association estimates the growth will result in 1.65 million British cruise holidays this year.

Cruise operators are recognising the growth of European markets, including the UK and Ireland, and some are relocating their ships to regional ports in a bid to capitalise on the increase.

Royal Caribbean Cruises recently positioned itself to reach out to this market by announcing that Liberty of the Seas will be moved from the US to Barcelona next year.

Meanwhile, details of itineraries and prices for 63 cruises running from April through to November have been released by Fred Olsen Cruise Lines in its 2011 Preview brochure.

Covering the company's four cruise ships, the brochure features the destination areas of the Mediterranean, northern Europe and Baltic, the Canary Islands, Iberia, the UK and Ireland.

Holidaymakers will be able to go for short voyages with the company thanks to the inclusion of a number of mini cruises, which will last for between two and four nights and will depart from Dover, Southampton, Liverpool, Newcastle, Greenock and Rosyth.