Research commissioned for National Cruise Week ( September20 ? 27) has highlighted some intriguing items that the British don?t want to live without whilst on a cruise.
p>Research commissioned for National Cruise Week ( September20 ? 27) has highlighted some intriguing items that the British don?t want to live without whilst on a cruise.Aside from the normal holiday clothes and sun lotion - technology, vanity and creature comforts all play a role in the things we feel the need to include in our cruise holiday packing.
British cruisers like to stay connected with friends and family whilst travelling ? the most popular item is our mobile phone, which seven out of ten of us would not take a cruise without.
Next most popular is an Ipod or MP3 player with 46% of us bringing it along, so we are also a nation of music and gadget lovers. Whether it?s work pressures or a desire to boast about our great cruising holiday while we?re actually on it, 31% of us feel the need to bring a laptop with us too. And with most cruise ships offering Wifi and a mobile signal, passengers need never feel out of touch.
It?s not only technology that makes us feel at ease on the seas ? 27% would still bring along our own teabags or favourite drink from home.
As far as the differences between the girls and boys go, the girls have major concerns about ?holiday hair? with 39% of women considering hair straighteners indispensable ? but so do 4% of the men.
The ladies are also more concerned about where they lay their holiday head ? double the amount of women bring along their own pillow (14% women versus 7% men).
And when it comes to gadgets, men are more bothered about their laptop, while the women think it?s better to talk (15% more men than women bring a laptop, while the mobile phone is 9% more important for the girls than the boys).
There are some quirky regional differences in what?s a ?must have? item on a cruise holiday.
For laptops, it?s Londoners that top the list ? perhaps it?s unsurprising that those hailing from the capital seem most married to their technology (36% of Londoners would take a laptop with them, against the average nationwide of 31%).
What might come as more surprising is that the Midlands and Scotland are the regions most concerned about their hair (both scoring 28% against the average of 22% when it comes to seeing hair straighteners as indispensable).
While Welsh holidaymakers seem to want to make their own entertainment whilst cruising as this is the region most likely to take along portable DVD players and drinks or teabags from home! (17% of Welsh travellers would bring along a portable DVD player against the average of 10%, and 35% would bring their own drinks against the national score of 27%).
National Cruise Week runs throughout Britain from 20 to 27 September 2009.
ACE (Association of Cruise Experts) travel agents across the country have access to the latest deals and offers.
For further news and information about National Cruise Week 2009 please visit www.discovercruises.co.uk
