Cruise Passengers: Q4/2024
There were 92 cruise liner calls during the fourth quarter of 2024, an increase of 10 when compared to the corresponding quarter of the previous year. Transit passengers accounted for the absolute majority of total traffic, reaching 166,564 (94.2 per cent). On average, every vessel that berthed in Malta carried 1,922 passengers, 140 less than the previous year.
Passengers from EU Member States comprised 36.2 per cent of total traffic. The major markets were Italy, accounting for 10.2 per cent of the total passengers, followed by Germany, with 8.8 per cent. The total number of passengers from non-EU countries stood at 112,806, of whom 18.1 per cent came from the United Kingdom and 44.8 per cent came from the United States.
On a gender basis, female passengers made up 54.1 per cent of the total. The largest share of passengers fell within the 60-79 age bracket (46.2 per cent) and were followed by those aged between 40 and 59 years (27.4 per cent) (Table1).
January-December 2024
During 2024, total cruise passengers stood at 849,088. Of these, 41.5 per cent came from EU Member States.
The majority of the passengers were females amounting to 456,176 or 53.7 per cent of the total. Most passengers were between 60 and 79 years old, totalling 317,033 (37.3 per cent). These were followed by passengers aged 40-59 years, reaching 256,761 (30.2 per cent).
There were 363 cruise liner calls during the year, with an average of 2,339 passengers per vessel, compared to 309 calls and an average of 2,636 passengers per vessel in 2023 (Table 2).
Chart 1. Total cruise passenger traffic
No Data Found
Methodological Notes
| Embarkations | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
| October-December | 6,742 | 6,608 | 9,618 |
| January-December | 71,244 | 103,650 | 113,004 |
- Cruise passenger traffic: comprises transit passengers and passengers who land in Malta.
- Embarkations: comprise all cruise passengers who are either Maltese or who are foreigners who arrive in Malta by other means of transport.
- Transit passengers: comprise all cruise passengers who arrive in and leave Malta on the same cruise ship.
- Landed passengers: comprise all cruise passengers who arrive in Malta on a cruise ship and leave by other means of transport, or alternatively, stay in Malta.
- Passengers staying overnight: comprise passengers who spend at least one night on the Maltese Islands, either onboard the cruise ship or on land.
- Average number of passengers per vessel: computed by dividing total cruise passenger traffic by the number of cruise liner calls.
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Cruise Passengers: Q4/2024
- Total cruise passenger traffic during the fourth quarter of 2024 amounted to 176,812, an increase of 4.6 per cent over 2023.
- There were 92 cruise liner calls during the fourth quarter of 2024, an increase of 10 when compared to the corresponding quarter of the previous year.
- The United States, United Kingdom, and Italy were the top three markets for the fourth quarter of 2024.
- Total cruise passenger traffic during 2024 amounted to 849,088, an increase of 4.2 per cent over 2023.
- There were 363 cruise liner calls during 2024, an increase of 54 when compared to the previous year.
