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122 Cruise Lines International Association
1981 to 147 in 1985 and 170 in 1990. In 1995,
cruise supply consisted of 245 ships carrying
188,000 berths and thirty new vessels to be
delivered by 2000 with 53,000 new berths.
Although several older �and smaller) ships will be
deleted from the fleet due to new regulations,
scrapping or casualties, overcapacity is now a
threat since the new ships are often much larger.
The highly competitive environment resulting in
lower fares is leading to mergers or joint ventures
to maintain profitability and viability.
References
G.P. Wild Ltd �1996) `State of the cruise industry
and future development to the year 2000',
International Cruise and Ferry Review Autumn/
Winter: 35±40.
ALAIN DECROP, BELGIUM
Cruise Lines International
Association
The primary objective of the Cruise Lines International
Association �CLIA) is to assist its over
22,000 affiliated agencies to become more successful
in capitalising on the cruise market. Currently,
the Association has twenty-four member lines
which represent virtually 100 per cent of the cruise
industry. Over 95 per cent of their business is
generated by travel agents, a partnership which is
stressed by CLIA. But the Association is prohibited
from involvement with any operational or marketing
activities of individual member lines. It does not
serve as an industry ombudsman, nor is it involved
with any lobbying activities. CLIA operates under
by-laws established with the Federal Maritime
Commission and developed with the support of
ASTA, ARTA, AAA and ACTA. Unlike other
organisations, CLIA maintains regular dialogue
with all the major trade associations. Through joint
meetings held between its Executive Committee
and appropriate associations, it provides a forum
for discussing important issues facing the cruise
industry.
TURGUT VAR, USA
Cuba
Tourism development in Cuba has been heavily
influenced by the country's changing relationships
with global superpowers. Following independence
from Spain �1898), neo-colonial economic links
with the United States grew. Cuba produced sugar
for the American market and acted as the `winter
playground' for wealthy US citizens. The tourism
industry was focused on Havana and the beach
resort of Varadero, emphasising `sea, sand, sun and
sex', with gaming also important. Like the Cuban
economy as a whole, tourism was heavily dependent
upon US foreign investment. By 1958, on
the eve of the downfall of the Batista regime, tourist
numbers had reached 350,000 and tourism ranked
second to sugar as a foreign exchange earner.
By the early 1960s, Fidel Castro's revolutionary
government had become avowedly Marxist and
was building close ties with the USSR. In response,
the United States declared an economic embargo
against Cuba which continues to impose travel
restrictions to this day. Castro's active discouragement
of international tourism and promotion of
domestic tourism led overseas arrivals to fall to
10,000 by 1974. In 1976 the industry was nurtured
to life again with the creation of the Soviet-inspired
Intur, a state body designed to attract, package and
oversee international tourists. The 1980s saw
further expansion with the state establishing a
number of enclave beach resorts. By 1990 arrivals
had almost returned to their pre-revolution peak.
The collapse of the USSR and the tightening of
the US embargo led to a dramatic fall in Cuban
living standards during the early 1990s. This
prompted some liberalisation of the economy and
mass tourism was placed at the centre of
attempts to attract overseas capital and to generate
hard currency. In 1996 over one million tourists
arrived, primarily from Canada, Western Europe
and South America, making tourism the leading
foreign exchange earner.
The government is trying to diversify the
tourism product and promote more sustainable
use of Cuba's natural resources, by turning to
alternative tourism. Cuba boasts a variety of
environmental and cultural features that are of
great touristic value. In many cases, areas of
natural beauty lie close to towns with a rich