Tourism Minister Francis Zammit Dimech is anticipating another good year for the cruise industry, one in which one of the largest Royal Caribbean ships will make regular visits next season.

Dr Zammit Dimech was speaking at a ceremony to mark the appointment of Executive Cruises, a joint venture between SMS Group and the Mondial Group, as international representatives and sole sales agents in Malta for Royal Caribbean Cruise Line and Celebrity Cruises.

He said the expansion of the cruise industry in Europe was reflected in Malta, where the number of cruise passengers had increased every year.

A total of 320,104 tourists visited Malta last year aboard cruise liners, representing a 9.7 increase over 2004, he said. And over the last 10 years the increase had been nearly fivefold - from 69,240 in 1996 to 320,104 last year.

Now that the Valletta Waterfront was in operation, cruise passengers were getting the first positive impressions of the country, he continued. The embellishment of the route from the Valletta Waterfront to Castille Place - with the first phase of the project now complete - would further enhance the capital city in the eyes of cruise passengers.

Dr Zammit Dimech said that Celebrity Cruises, with 10 ships, has one of the youngest and most innovative fleets of any major line. The Royal Caribbean Cruise Line, with 20 ships, enjoys one of the highest repeat passenger percentages in the cruise liner market segment.

The cruise industry accounted for nearly 14 million cruise holidays in 2004. North America accounted for 71 per cent of the bookings and Europe for 21 per cent, or 2.8 million bookings.

In Europe, the cruise industry has undergone significant expansion over the last 15 years with an annual growth rate of over 10 per cent since 2001. Of the more than 2.8 million European citizens that in 2004 enjoyed a cruise, 70 per cent visited European destinations.