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Cruise Ship Holidays{{/B}} Passengers on cruise ship holidays, as they are {{U}}(0) {{/U}} on TV programs and films, usually appear to be both rich and elderly. Such people do not, however, accurately represent the 6.8 million {{U}}(19) {{/U}} who took this kind of holiday last year. Over the last few years the world cruise industry has concentrated on {{U}}(20) {{/U}} to younger, less wealthy people, giving them a/an {{U}}(21) {{/U}} more like a floating disco than the traditional quiet holiday on a luxury ship. Even families with young children are no longer so {{U}}(22) {{/U}} on cruise ship. Partly as a result, the number of passengers taking a cruise has increased by a/an {{U}}(23) {{/U}} of 8.5 % a year since 1990. Cruise Star is now the world's {{U}}(24) {{/U}} cruise line. The other two major companies are Intersail and Seaways. Together these three carry {{U}}(25) {{/U}} half the world's cruise passengers and {{U}}(26) {{/U}} almost all the industry's profits. For the 30 or so smaller firms, life is much tougher. That is because {{U}}(27) {{/U}} size brings so many benefits to the large firms. They can negotiate bulk discounts on {{U}}(28) {{/U}} such as food and fuel, and even, if they order enough of them, on ships. A secondary {{U}}(20) {{/U}} for the smaller operators is that they cannot spread overheads such broadly marketing. A significant part of the cost of {{U}}(30) {{/U}} people on a cruise happens before they go on board the ship. The three large companies between them spend more than $ 100 million a year on TV {{U}}(31) {{/U}} in America. They {{U}}(32) {{/U}} armies of salesman. Delivering passengers to the ship is part of package deal and, once again, {{U}}(33) {{/U}} means savings: Cruise Star is the biggest single buyer of airline tickets in America. |