The concept of passenger cruising goes back more than 150 years when the idea of sailing for pleasure on an ocean going vessel was first proposed.

The Founding of P&O

The suggestion came in a fantasy article written in the Shetland Journal in 1835 by Arthur Anderson, who made his dream move closer to reality just two years later by co-founding the Peninsular Steam Navigation Company – later known as P&O.

Anderson’s vision was for a programme of cruises which sailed between Scotland and Iceland in the summer and as far afield as the Mediterranean in winter.

The Golden Age of Cruise Liners

Despite foreign travel becoming fashionable amongst the new wealthy on the back of the industrial revolution in Victorian Britain, sailing for pleasure did not really become popular until the twentieth century.

Opulent liners were built to serve passengers travelling between Europe and North America and they raced for the Blue Riband trophy awarded for the fastest transatlantic crossing.

But the development of the jet engine and long haul passenger aircraft prompted a rapid decline in passengers from the late 1950s resulting in ships like the Queen Elizabeth becoming redundant in 1968. By the 1970s the advent of the Boeing 747 Jumbo jet saw the end of the golden age of transatlantic cruise liners, although Cunard upholds the tradition with the ultra-modern Queen Mary 2.

P&O began schools cruises in the 1930s and by the 1960s the company was running two ships both offering year round programmes. Many British adults had their first experience of foreign travel through these vessels and remember the s.s.Uganda and s.s.Nevassa with great affection.

Cruising Today

Cruising has come along way since then with the development of modern cruise ships of all shapes and sizes capable of appealing to holidaymakers of all budgets and ages.

Today cruising is the fastest growing sector of the UK holiday industry with more than 1.25 million Britons setting sail on a cruise holiday every year. New cruise destinations get added every year as lines look for more exciting ports of call around the globe.

Next year will see a record number of ships operating from UK ports, including the world’s largest, Royal Caribbean International’s Independence of the Seas, P&O Cruises’ largest new vessel Ventura which is being built specifically for the British cruise market, and Cunard Line’s distinctively stylish Queen Victoria.

While the impressive resort-style ships have wide appeal, there is also growing demand for smaller, more intimate vessels and adventure cruise ships which are able to visit more off the beaten track destinations, ranging from the Antarctic and Amazon through to Zanzibar.

New standards are set with every ship launch, whether be for on board facilities such as surf parks or bowling alleys, cuisine overseen by celebrity chefs or the very latest spa and well being treatments.

The variety of cruise holidays is also expanding, particularly shorter-duration sailings of two to four days which provide an ideal taster for those who have never had the experience before.