Southampton can replicate on a record-breaking cruise 12 months, with greater than £1 billion generated for town. Southampton, the UK’s greatest cruise port, obtained over 450 cruise ship calls, welcoming over 2.6 million passengers.
UK’s Largest Cruise Port Generates Extra Than 1 Billion Kilos
2023 has been probably the most profitable 12 months in historical past for the UK’s busiest cruise port, Southampton. The Related British Ports introduced on January 1, 2024, that the port generated greater than £1 billion in 2023, benefitting Southampton and the broader Hampshire space.
Greater than 460 cruise ships referred to as on the port in 2023, bringing with them 2.6 million cruise passengers. It makes Southampton one of many main cruise ports in Europe, and the biggest by a big margin in Western Europe.
Stephen Manion, Government Director of Go Southampton: “Cruise passengers are a massively essential a part of Southampton and Hampshire’s vacationer economic system.
‘Cruisers’ are typically increased spending guests than the typical and throughout a wider vary of classes. We look ahead to working with the Port of Southampton to extend not simply the numbers of tourists however their potential to entry the Metropolis and all that it has to supply.”
The principle areas the place the business made vital contributions to the native economic system included the hospitality business, together with lodges and eating places, transportation similar to taxis, employed vehicles, public transport and busses, stevedoring companies throughout loading operations and different port operations, and gas bunkering.
Altogether, the cruise business supported over 15,000 jobs in 2023 in Southampton throughout its 5 totally different cruise terminals, which additionally contains the brand new Horizon Terminal. The cruise sector is among the greatest employers within the area, producing revenue from a number of industries, together with lodges, transportation, gas provide, and port operations.
Alastair Welch, ABP Regional Director, Southampton: “We’re pleased with the position we play in supporting the native, regional, and nationwide economic system. Whereas this can be a report 12 months for cruise within the Metropolis, we proceed to speculate on this and different port-related sectors to make sure long-term success for our Port Metropolis.”
Southampton Seems Forward to 2024
Whereas winter may not be the very best time to go cruising in Western Europe, Southampton stays busy, with a number of cruise ships scheduled for calls through the first 4 months of the 12 months.
MSC Euribia, Queen Victoria, AidaNova, Queen Mary 2, Iona, Norwegian Pleasure, Sky Princess, Arvia, Jewel of the Seas, Regal Princess, MSC Virtuosa, MSC Poesia, and plenty of extra are all scheduled for visits via April 30. In all, 50 cruise ship calls are scheduled to Southampton Port between January 3, 2024, and April 30, 2024.
From April, the port shall be considerably busier because the climate round Europe improves. In Could, 66 calls are scheduled on the port, 58 calls are scheduled in June, 51 in July, and 68 in August. Between September 1 and December 31, 2024, one other 162 calls are scheduled to happen, a quantity that can doubtless enhance even additional.
Southampton can look ahead to an much more profitable cruise 12 months, with an increasing number of cruise ships and cruise passengers discovering their solution to considered one of Europe’s most handy cruise ports.
