In June, cruise passenger traffic in Malta accounted for 55,407 persons, an increase of

69.9 per cent over the same month in 2006 according to National Statistics Office figures released yesterday.

Total cruise passenger traffic amounted to 55,407, an increase of 22,790 passengers over the same month in 2006. Embarkations from and landings in Malta in this month stood at 1,184 and 1,164 persons respectively.

January-June 2007

During the first six months of 2007, total cruise passenger traffic amounted to 164,819, an increase of 24.6 per cent over the same period last year. Same-day visitors from EU countries accounted for 84.1 per cent of total traffic, the main markets being Italy, Germany and Spain . The American market remained substantial, representing more than half of the non-EU incoming passengers. The growth was underpinned by increases from the Italian and Spanish markets.

On a gender basis, total traffic was almost on a par, with male passengers exceeding female ones by 1.3 per cent. The largest proportion of passengers - 33.2 per cent - comprised persons aged between 40 and 59 years, followed by those in the 60-79 age bracket who accounted for 31.7 per cent of the total.

Average number of passengers per cruise liner

In June, cruise liner calls increased by 10 when compared to the same month in 2006, bringing the total for the first six months of the year to 135 compared to 136 in the same period of 2006.