T wo Costa cruise liners – the Magica and the Deliziosa – were berthed for the day at the Grand Harbour last Thursday, with their massive chimneys towering above Valletta’s bastions.

There is nothing more enticing, disenchanting, and enslaving than life at sea- Joseph Conrad

Both ships left the port later that same day to continue their journeys in the Mediterranean. The Deliziosa will be calling at Malta every Thursday for the next three weeks.

There has been quite a stir in the cruise ship industry this year after the Costa Concordia ran aground with more than 4,000 passengers on board off the island of Giglio in Italy .

Thirty-two people died in the disaster, raising many questions on whether the necessary safety precautions on cruise liners are really and truly in place and also whether they have managed to keep up the pace with the ongoing demand for such big cruise liners.

But in reality, the cruise liner industry remains as safe as ever.

Figures from industry specialist GP Wild show that in the 10 years beforethe Concordia accident only 28 people died on cruise ships, 22 of them crew members.

Malta’s cruise liner industry has fared very well in recent years, with 550,000 cruise passengers visiting the island in 2011 – up 13.3 per cent over the previous year.

Last year was a record one for the cruise industry in Malta. There were 311 cruise liner calls, 36 more than 2010.

However, the number of passengers in December dropped by a third.

Cruise passenger movements in March totalled 3,853. This is 38 per cent less than February last year.

The main reason for the drop was the cancellation of a call due to bad weather. As a result, this February, there was only one call.

The total passenger movements to date is 15,967, or seven per cent more than the total for the first two months of 2011.

The trend to continue building huge cruise ships seems to be growing, with 13 ships being launched last year, four of which are liners with a capacity of at least 2.500 passengers, and 15 vessels scheduled for launch this year.

AFP reported that the industry attracted a record 16 million passengers worldwide in 2011, with American customers leading the way. Europe accounts for six million of those passengers, with the British accounting for the biggest numbers.

In March, MSC ordered a 333-metre-long cruise liner with a capacity of 5,700 passengers to add to its constantly-growing list of luxury ships. Days later, Royal Caribbean Cruise Line ordered another designed for 4,200 passengers.

Meanwhile, 1,309 passengers are sailing on a Titanic Memorial Cruise, which is retracing the voyage from Southampton of the ill-fated Titanic liner. The most notorious liner hit an iceberg and sank exactly 100 years ago.

space@timesofmalta.com