A recent survey has shown that luxury cruisers are feeling cautiously optimistic about travel in 2022, with 93% planning to take at least one cruise this year.
The survey, carried out by Mundy Cruising, showed short haul destinations came out on top, with 49% planning to visit the Mediterranean and 23% eyeing a European river cruise. The Caribbean, Baltic and British Isles also featured prominently on cruisers’ wish lists for 2022. The findings were the latest to be gleaned from Mundy’s Cruise Expert Panel, which launched in October 2020 to coincide with the company’s 50th anniversary.
The ongoing impact of Covid-19 inevitably looms over travel plans for 2022, with 62% of respondents stating that they will avoid countries with low vaccination rates, and 92% said that Covid-19 policies were either very important or somewhat important when choosing a cruise ship. Encouragingly for the industry, 47% thought that the risk from Covid-19 was lower on a cruise ship than an aeroplane, compared to 18% who disagreed, and 37% said that cruise ships were safer than hotels, versus 25% who disagreed.
The survey also found that 46% of respondents are planning to travel on a smaller ship in 2022 compared to before the pandemic, and 42% expect to splash out on a higher grade of accommodation than before. The growing importance of sustainability was reflected in the fact that 41% said hybrid or low carbon propulsion was important when selecting a ship, compared to 19% who disagreed.
The new ship that the survey panel are most excited about is Silversea’s Silver Dawn, launching in March 2022 and highlighted by 29% of respondents, while 27% are looking forward to Regent’s Seven Seas Grandeur in 2023 and 19% are interested in Seabourn’s first expedition ship Seabourn Venture, making her debut in April 2022 with a 12-night voyage from Greenwich to Edinburgh.
“Our latest survey shows that travellers are unperturbed by the recent media frenzy around the omicron variant,” commented Mundy Cruising managing director Edwina Lonsdale, “and their plans and priorities for 2022 reflect a growing sense that we are over the worst of the pandemic. While Covid policies on board and vaccination rates in destination countries are of course still front of mind, cruisers are also looking to the future, with more emphasis placed on sustainable travel and excitement around the next generation of luxury ships.
“It’s also no surprise to us that our clients believe cruising to be safer than other forms of travel, given the industry-leading protocols that the cruise lines, port authorities and other key players have put in place over the last two years to ensure that a cruise ship is the very safest place to be. We are confident that the burning desire of travellers to get back to normal, along with the news that the UK government has overhauled its onerous and unnecessary testing regime for overseas travel, mean that cruise will come roaring back in 2022.”
For further information about Mundy Cruising, call 020 7399 7670 or visit www.mundycruising.co.uk
