While cruise passenger traffic in April declined by 17.4 per cent when compared to the corresponding month last year, the first four months this year saw an increase of 22.9 per cent over the corresponding period in 2008.

April 2009 – Total cruise passenger traffic amounted to 37,934, a decrease of 7,990 passengers over the corresponding month in 2008. Embarkations from and landings in Malta stood at 440 and 493 persons respectively.

January-April 2009 – Total cruise passenger traffic in Malta amounted to 69,747, an increase of 22.9 per cent over the comparative period last year. Passengers from EU countries accounted for 65.8 per cent of total traffic, the main markets being Germany, the United Kingdom, France and Italy. The American market registered a rise, representing 62.6 per cent of non-EU incoming passengers.

On a gender basis, female passengers exceeded male ones by 8.2 per cent, reversing the trend observed in previous years. The largest proportion of passengers – 44.1 per cent – comprised persons aged 60-79, followed by those in the 40-59 age bracket, who accounted for 29.8 per cent of the total.

The average number of passengers per cruise liner, which is defined as the number of cruise passengers divided by the number of cruise liner calls, increased to 1,224 passengers per vessel for April. There were 31 cruise liner calls in April, bringing the total for 2009 to 46, compared to 53 calls last year.

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