2007 Record For Malta Cruise Industry

With the airline industry producing an increase in tourists for 2007, welcome figures have come from Malta's cruise industry too, with a record year of cruise ship passenger arrivals.

What makes the figures particularly impressive for the holiday island is that this year's record comes after a record year in 2006, while the number of tourists arriving by air had started from a low 2006 base.

Just three years ago in 2004 Malta attracted 270,000 cruise passengers, and took that over 300,000 for 2005. Last year the island did even better to produce a record year and for 2007 will produce an estimated 425,000 or more visitors by the end of the year.

A new feature for cruise passengers visiting Malta is an open top bus which will take them to places of interest on the island, including the historic capital Valletta and the Grand Harbour area, to showcase what Malta has to offer.

Commenting on the new facilities and impressive tourist numbers, a travel guide for Malta welcomes both, stating that cruise passengers might decide to visit Malta in the future as a solo holiday rather than as part of a multi destination trip if cruise passengers like what they see, and with increased cruise passenger numbers Malta has the opportunity to increase the number of holidays being taken annually on the Mediterranean island.

The combination of increased tourist numbers comes at a time when the number of passenegrs arriving by air has also seen quite an increase, and the two methods of arrival for Malta has helped transform the hotel and holidays industry fortunes for 2007 and next year.

The number of tourists choosing Malta rose by seven per cent in the first quarter of this year compared to last, and gives vindication to the Maltese hotels and holidays lobby who had urged the government to allow low cost airlines to fly to the island.

The first three months of the year are traditionally the quietest for the Malta holidays industry, and is thought to reflect the year as a whole so far, with perhaps even a close to ten per cent increase in tourism overall for 2007 compared to 2006.

The surprise among the statistics is where the tourists have come from. Many people in the Malta holidays industry expected a big increase in visitors from the UK, but visitor numbers have remained static, as they have from Germany and France. The increase in visitors came from Russia, Sweden, Belgium and Italy. Good news comes not only from the increase in tourist numbers, but also from the amount tourists spend while on the island - some ten per cent higher than 2006, with cruise passengers spending more per person while visiting Malta.

Another airline called Click Air has also joined the race for the flight to Malta market recently, putting pressure on the low cost airlines already operating to Malta to further reduce their prices to stay ahead of their competition, - all good news for consumers who have a choice of flying or taking a cruise which includes Malta as a port of call.

Regular travellers to Malta have never had it so good. Not only has their choice of airline and airports serving Malta widened considerably, but the perennial favourite of many business and holiday travellers, Air Malta, has fought back against the new low cost airlines with reduced fares and offers of their own and the number of cruise ships visiting Malta could follow a similar pattern.

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Source: http://www.pcwriters.com/Article/2007-Record-For-Malta-Cruise-Industry/83271

Enjoy Your Cruise Vacation - It's The Little Things

From your cabin, to the dining rooms, to the exotic or not so exotic destinations, your cruise vacation should be a joy.

Like anything in life there will be unexpected things that happen. But preparing for the unexpected, and embracing the adventure of your cruise vacation will ratchet up your joy quotient considerably.

There are some things that you need to do before your cruise day arrives and you start the dream vacation. These tasks, should you choose to accept them, will greatly enhance the peace-of-mind quotient of you joyous vacation.

Bring your passport for easy access to and from excursions,

Bring your health insurance cards,

Give your ships travel plan to friends, and

Make sure that you get a room with a veranda. Watch the ocean go by from your cabin. Your room will be a great vacation location in and of itself.

Breathe deeply...

Because now we can cruise anywhere we want and get back, fearlessly go on excursions knowing that medial treatment, if available is ours for the taking, and we are secure in the fact that our friends will know how to reach us at any time. Lastly, our room will serve as a vacation oasis 24/7.

Shoving Off - First Things First

Let's begin at the beginning once your cruise is booked and all your transfer arrangements have been made then set the factors that you control in your favor. Understand the circumstances for the boarding the vessel for instance. Will you be required to wait in long lines? Since your cabins are reserved think about finding a location close to the departing vessel where you can relax and maybe avoid the long boarding lines. Remember! Being first does not ensure a good time. Don't stress this detail. Last with time to spare is good to.

While Cruising

While cruising...

A few activities will insure that you actual cruise experience will be cool, calm, and collected. Many people like to lounge near pools and other common areas. If you're one of those people this tip will help:

Make sure that your up early to get the choice seats in and around the pool and deck areas.

The new less formal cruises offer a lot of flexibility for your eating schedules but if you are not on one of those then you choice of dining times should not get in the way of your excursions.

Choose late seating so that cruise excursions don't encroach upon your dining plans

Make sure that you enjoy your cruise vacation. Research your excursions well in advance and then choose the ones that suit you the best. Then follow these few small tips and your cruise vacation will be the stuff of dreams.

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Source: http://www.pcwriters.com/Article/Enjoy-Your-Cruise-Vacation----It-s-The-Little-Things/83870

Cheap Cruise Shopping - Getting The Best Price

Finding a cheap cruise today is easy. There are so many options available to cruise hunters that the main problem is deciding on exactly which holiday to choose.

For first time cruisers, there are several guidelines you can use to choose a vacation which won't damage your budget. The internet has opened up an exciting new world for shoppers in the last decade and sailing the high seas at affordable prices is now a no-brainer.

In this article, we'll give you some tips on helping you to find a cheap cruise and in the process, give you a guide you can use over and over again.

Six Cheap Cruise Tips

1. One of the best ways to gat a cheap deal is to shop and compare. Use the internet as your starting point and come up with a short list of preferred options. Then contact your local travel agent and see if they can beat the prices on offer.

2. Cruising during the off season will save you plenty. Vacations are usually well discounted at these times.

3. Avoid booking through the cruise lines. Check the major sites on the web or alternatively, check through a travel agent.

4. Look for what are known as repositioning cruises. Companies will move their ships from various locations during peak seasons and relocate them to destinations about to begin a peak season. Often, there are great discounts to be had by booking a holiday on these ships during the relocation phase.

5. For those who like to plan well ahead, then taking advantage of advance specials is recommended.

6. Alternatively, if you want to travel on short notice then getting a last minute special is usually available through various discount sites. Auction holidays have also become popular and you can bid for discount cruises on selected sites.
Travel Agents

Despite the strong presence of cheap cruise sites on the internet the value of a good travel agent is still hard to beat.

If you follow the rule of avoiding the booking process through the cruise lines and stick with a travel agent you'll usually be rewarded with an excellent deal. Cruise lines generally like to concentrate on organizing and running the trip and a good deal of the tickets available are farmed out to various outlets including travel agents.

By shopping around, especially early in the booking process, you can usually ask various agents to beat any competing prices you have obtained and you'll be surprised at just how accomodating they can be. So remember, never settle on an initial price and be vigilant when cheap cruise shopping.

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Source: http://www.pcwriters.com/Article/Cheap-Cruise-Shopping---Getting-The-Best-Price/82444