Total cruise passenger traffic during the fourth quarter of 2014 amounted to 153,251, an increase of 27.0 per cent over the corresponding period in 2013. There were 100 cruise liner calls during the quarter, in comparison with 92 in the previous year, the National Statistics Office said today.

Cruise Passengers: Q4/2014

Transit passengers accounted for the vast majority of total traffic (92.7 per cent), reaching

142,066. Around 524 passengers visited Gozo, while 3,541 passengers spent at least one night on board their berthed cruise liner.

Visitors from EU Member States accounted for 80.7 per cent of total traffic, the major markets being Germany, Italy and France. On the other hand, the total number of passengers from Non-EU countries stood at 29,604; of these, 33.7 per cent came from the United States.

On a gender basis, female passengers made up 53.0 per cent of the total. The largest share of passengers was in the 60-79 age bracket and were followed by those aged between 40 and 59.

January-December 2014

Cruise passengers for 2014 stood at 471,554, a rise of 9.3 per cent over 2013. Of these, 77.9 per cent came from EU Member States. The biggest increases were recorded from the German and French markets, which advanced by 29,314 and 28,508 passengers respectively. In contrast, passengers from the United Kingdom and Spain dropped by 24,062 and 12,496 respectively.

The majority of cruise passengers were females, amounting to 247,687. Most passengers were between 60 and 79 years old, totalling 189,422. These were followed by passengers aged 40-59, reaching 147,740.

There were 303 cruise liner calls in 2014, with an average 1,556 passengers per vessel, compared to 286 calls and an average 1,508 passengers per vessel in 2013.