Chapter 3: Cruise Tourism, Gender and Sustainability

International tourism is one of the fastest growing sectors in the global economy (Clancy, 1999; Tang & Tan, 2013). In addition, it is the engine for generating economic and employment growth for a particular country, so that the tourism sector contributes 10.3% of the Gross World Product (Belloumi,, 2010; WTTC, 2020). It is also the leading driver of socio-economic progress (Shahzad, Shahbaz, Ferrer, & Kumar, 2017). Modern cruising is a fast-growing part of the maritime industry, and inevitably produces different effects on different destinations (Papathanassis & Beckmann, 2011; Sun, Jiao, & Tian, 2011). Cruising refers to sailing across oceans or along coasts, following certain travel plans or itineraries (Jankomin, Jankomin, Pučko, & Maver, 2001). Cruise ship represents an aspect of the tourism industry which includes transport, accommodation and attractions. It has recorded continuous growth over the last 20 years, despite the economic crisis, with an average growth of 7% per annum (FCCA,, 2017; Karlis & Polemis, 2018). The Cruise Lines International Association, CLIA (2019a), points out that global demand for cruises has increased by 50% from 17.8 million passengers in 2009 to 26.7 million in 2017. In order to stay competitive, cruise tourism is forced to introduce continuous innovations, such as new port destinations, new thematic products, new concepts of cruise ship services and entertainment and out-of-ship activities (Marksel, Tominc,, & Bo,ž,i,č,nik , 2016).