The number of Russian passengers of cruise ships will exceed 100 thousand by the end of the year

“The number of sea cruises’ tourists on the Russian market is growing annually by 30-35%. According to the results of 2019, the total number of passengers from the Russian Federation on international cruise liners should reach 100 thousand,” told Ilya Itkin, the CEO of Pac Group company. 
“We still do not have figures for 2019, but we have them for 2018. In total there were 78 thousand Russian-speaking customers on all cruise ships in the world. By the end of 2019, I expect growth to 100 thousand. Last year the company ended with 33 thousand passengers. This year there will be 44-45 thousand, slightly less than half the market. Passenger traffic from Russia is growing only in two Italian companies - Costa Cruises and MSC Cruises. These operators hold together 80-85% of the Russian market," the expert said during the inauguration of the new MSC Grandiosa liner. 
According to him, the reason of the popularity of Italian companies is that they focus on European market and, as a matter of priority, offer the most sought-after product on the Russian market - cruises along the Mediterranean Sea. “At the same time, the passenger flow of MSC Cruises is growing faster, as they have newer liners. Only this year the MSC Belissima and MSC Grandiosa were launched. These are the liners of the newest series with a capacity of 5,7 thousand and more than 6 thousand passengers,” Itkin emphasized. 
He said that the Persian Gulf and the Caribbean Sea are also among the three most popular cruise regions among Russians. "The list of TOP-10 Russian regions, where sea cruises are best sold, includes Moscow, St. Petersburg, Samara, Kazan, Nizhny Novgorod, Rostov, Krasnodar, Novosibirsk," he said.