Southampton Cruise Centre, part of the Travel Village Group, has officially registered the SailorMade trademark for its Cruise & Stay collection, as demand for combined cruise-and-land packages accelerates sharply. The company reported that bookings for these integrated holidays jumped more than 800% in the first half of 2026, reflecting a structural shift in how UK travellers approach cruise vacations.
Longer stays, deeper exploration
The average Cruise & Stay package now spans 16 nights, a 23% increase year-on-year. Travellers are spending an average of three nights ashore before embarkation and two nights after disembarkation, opting for more immersive destination experiences. Top pre- and post-cruise cities include Miami, Barcelona and Athens, with growing interest in long-haul gateways such as Singapore, Tokyo and San Francisco.
Phil Nuttall, CEO of Travel Village Group, said: “Customers are no longer viewing the cruise as the entire holiday. They’re increasingly looking to turn it into a complete travel experience by spending extra time exploring the destination before they sail or after they return.”
The SailorMade trademark underscores the company’s commitment to offering curated, trusted itineraries that simplify the booking process for travel agents and their clients. By securing the mark, Southampton Cruise Centre aims to reinforce its position as a leading cruise specialist in the UK market, particularly as demand for personalised, multi-destination holidays grows.
The trend aligns with broader industry data showing that cruise passengers increasingly value land-stay components. Major cruise lines such as Royal Caribbean International, Norwegian Cruise Line and MSC Cruises have expanded their own pre- and post-cruise hotel packages, while destinations like Barcelona and Singapore have invested in airport-to-port connectivity to capture this demand.
For travel agents and tour operators, the rise of Cruise & Stay packages presents an opportunity to increase average booking value and customer loyalty. Southampton Cruise Centre’s SailorMade collection provides a ready-made solution, bundling flights, transfers, hotel stays and cruise segments into a single, commissionable product.
The UK cruise market, which generated over £5 billion in direct spending in 2025, continues to evolve beyond traditional fly-cruise models. With Southampton Cruise Centre’s trademark registration, the company signals that integrated land-sea holidays are no longer a niche add-on but a core product category.
Travel Village Group operates multiple retail and online travel brands, and its investment in the SailorMade trademark reflects confidence that the Cruise & Stay segment will remain a growth driver. As Nuttall noted, the company expects these packages to play “a crucial role in the UK cruise market” in the years ahead.
For more on how destinations are adapting to this trend, see our coverage of WTE Miami’s expanded buyer program and the Vietnam Exposition Centre’s MICE ambitions.
