River cruise is facing a pivotal year, says CLIA river chairman

The river cruise industry is facing a pivotal year in 2024, according to the chairman of CLIA UK & Ireland’s river committee.

Jamie Loizou, who is also the UK managing director of AmaWaterways, cited research by Mintel which said that the industry would grow by 12% by 2028. He also quoted a report by Virtuoso, the luxury travel consortia, which said that there were big possibilities with small ships, which were seeing a huge rise in demand.

Loizou, who was delivering the opening remarks for CLIA’s 2024 RiverView Conference, added that in his opinion it was value underpinning the growth.

Clients were looking for “intuitive service” and “locally sourced cuisine” and “due to the economic environment, clients are demanding more value from their holidays”.

He also broke down the 15 new ships that would be launching in 2024, including three new vessels on the Douro in Portugal.

This year is the largest CLIA RiverView Conference to date with 440 travel agents in attendance. There are 11 river ships to tour as well as a conference session and a trade fair.