A drop in the number of cruise liner visitors in September should not affect the expected overall increase in numbers by the end of this year, Viset said.
It said in a statement that 22 liners called in Valletta in September, carrying 48,725 passengers, a drop of 17.2 per cent compared to September last year, when 58,876 passengers called in Valletta.
Despite this decrease, Vist is still expecting to finish the year with more passengers than 2009.
In fact, the number of passengers who called in Valletta since January stands at 347,134 compared to 299,698 passengers registered during the first nine months of 2009. That marks an increase of 15.8 per cent on last year.
Data published by the European Cruise Council during its annual meeting held in September, shows that the direct economic impact by the cruise industry to the Maltese economy in 2009 amounted to €62 million.
The same report noted that the cruise industry supported 2,531 indirect and direct jobs in Malta and generated around €34 million in compensation to these jobs.