By Tushar Srivastava/ The Hindustan Times

Despite economic slowdown and rising inflation, more and more Indian leisure travellers are opting for cruise holidays. Last year, over one lakh Indian tourist went for a cruise vacation and the number is expected to grow.

“India has the potential to become a cruise hub due to its strategic location, which covers both the East and the West,” said Ratna Chadha, CEO, Tirun Travel Marketing. Tirun is the India representative of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd, the world’s second-largest cruise company, which owns six brands.

The favourite destinations for Indian tourist are Alaska and the Mediterranean, she said.

Demand for cruise holidays in India could shoot-up if infrastructure at local ports was developed. At present Indians travellers have to travel to Singapore, Dubai or Europe as none of the cruise companies operate from India.

“When you have three-and-ahalf thousand people embarking and disembarking you need facilities, an airport-like structure. Currently our ships don’t turnaround from India. What they do is they come into India, that too, very seasonally and touch the ports and then move onwards to Singapore,” she said.