Meet the tour operator cutting cruise package holidays by 30-70 per cent

Cruising has never been as popular as it is now, and this swell in demand shows no sign of slowing down. In fact, as of 2026, nearly 90 per cent of cruisers say they intend to sail again according to the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA).

In large part, these changing tides are driven by travellers who don’t see themselves as ‘cruise people’ considering holidays at sea for the first time. You can understand why they’re tempted. Many cruise-and-stay itineraries have the advantages of fly-and-flop holidays, with the bonus of seeing multiple destinations in a single voyage.

This influx of newcomers to cruising also means the average age of passengers has dropped, with Gen Xers, Millennials and even Gen Zs finding their sea legs, and more cruise lines catching on to the fact that there is a real appetite among these age groups.

That said, a significant barrier remains for the cruise-curious: price. Enter Cruise Nation, the UK-based tour operator on a mission to make holidays at sea more affordable.

What is Cruise Nation?

To answer that, we need to rewind the clock to 2009. Phil Evans and Steve Boardman were seasoned travel professionals, who had spent years helming major tour operators and agencies when they identified a problem. Cruising felt out of reach for a huge number of potential passengers for two key reasons: the cost involved and the complexity of booking. They decided to change that, with a tour operator designed to champion value.

Since then, they’ve gone from scrappy start-up to multi-award-winning business, and in 2025 Cruise Nation was voted the world’s number one cruise booking website.

The team behind the success has a combined total of 400 years in the travel industry, and they’ve used that hard-earned expertise to create Smart Packages. These pair time at sea with complimentary pre- or post-cruise hotel stays of two to seven nights across more than 200 destinations.

As Phil says, “From day one, Cruise Nation set out to disrupt how cruises were sold in the UK and that wasn’t by accident. As demand has grown, we’ve added longer land stays in destinations like Greece, Malta, Spain and Orlando to help new-to-cruise customers try cruising without giving up their land holiday altogether.”

Smart Packages include options to suit a huge range of travel styles and budgets, spanning couples, groups, families and solo travellers, with itineraries from over 20 different cruise lines.

For example, resort-style ships from Royal Caribbean International and MSC Cruises are top picks for multi-gen groups, while Virgin Voyages is strictly over-18s. Costa Cruises, meanwhile, is one of the most cost-effective lines on the market, particularly compared to Seabourn and Silversea, which cost considerably more but deliver ultra-luxury experiences.

Why are first-time cruisers opting for Cruise Nation?

Cruise Nation has proved exceptionally skilled at transforming cruise sceptics into converts. Part of it comes down to the level of curation. It's not just a matter of peddling generic offers and seeing what lands. It's about creating packages that are genuinely worth your while.

The Best Price Guarantee on Smart Packages is often the first thing to catch people's eye. After all, who wouldn't want the chance to pay 30 to 70 per cent less than they'd spend booking the same cruise and hotel themselves?

That said, what seals the deal is the calibre of the experience and the choice available.

When it comes to delivering holidays that punch above their price, Cruise Nation relies on the relationships it's built with cruise lines and hotels, savvy last-minute deals and its capacity to book blocks of cabins. Taken together, this creates significant savings it passes on to customers.

What is strictly against the Cruise Nation ethos is sacrificing substance to make a package seem more attractive. Phil puts it simply: "If we can't offer a better holiday with exceptional value built in without cutting corners, we don't do it."

That means what you can expect to see on the Cruise Nation site is cruise-and-stay trips you actually want to take. Picture a break in Athens paired with island-hopping in the Cyclades, a getaway in Reykjavik followed by a cruise that coincides with a solar eclipse, or a night or two in Miami before a Caribbean cruise that docks at a private island.

Better still, you have the ability to customise your cruise and stay, with the option to depart directly from your local airport, select the hotel that suits you best and upgrade your cabin if you so wish. In fact, Tripadvisor reviews, facility information, gallery images and map views are built into the Cruise Nation website to help you decide exactly what you want.

Not one for staying still?

Toureka by Cruise Nation is the tour operator's foray into cruise-and-tour holidays.

Phil explains, "Travellers are looking to go beyond the traditional fly-and-flop holiday and Toureka is all about evolving to offer unique travel experiences that tick off bucket list experiences."

Top picks include…

• A full week exploring the Pyrenees by rail, with train journeys revealing dramatic mountain panoramas, followed by a Western Med cruise featuring destinations like Marseille, Ibiza and Rome.
• A tour of Cambodia that unveils the country’s temples, traditions and tropical waterways, paired with a holiday at sea calling at Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia.
• An escorted tour of cities that shaped the soul of American music, including New Orleans, Memphis and Nashville, combined with a cruise to ports in Honduras, Mexico and the Bahamas.

Five places to explore with Cruise Nation

1. The Caribbean

There’s a reason when you think cruise, you think Caribbean. The vast region lends itself to exploration by ship, with opportunities to sail between islands with distinctly different characters. One day might see you snorkelling among reefs teeming with marine life in Barbados, the next hiking among the verdant interiors of St Lucia or lounging on the golden beaches of Antigua.

Many Cruise Nation Smart Packages allow you to pair your Caribbean cruise with a stay in the United States. Orlando, which is known as the Theme Park Capital of the World, is a hit with families, while Miami, where you’ll find Little Havana and a wealth of Latin culture, is a great choice for couples and groups of friends.

Explore packages here.

2. The Western Mediterranean

This is one of the most popular regions to cruise, and between the sun-dappled shores, vespas zipping through ancient cities and the promise of aperitivo, it’s a classic for good reason.

With Cruise Nation, you can enjoy a city break in Barcelona, Rome or Marseille, before sailing between ports like Nice, Valencia, Valletta, Sorrento, Livorno (for Tuscany) and Portofino. In practice, that means a voyage where you may wander the lavender fields of Provence, sip limoncello on the Amalfi Coast or explore the Sagrada Familia, now the world’s tallest church.

Explore packages here.

3. The Eastern Mediterranean

This region sits high on many travellers’ wish lists, and it’s little wonder when you consider everything it has to offer, from bougainvillaea-draped Greek islands to Türkiye’s Turquoise Coast and the fjord-like bays of the Adriatic.

Cruise Nation offers cruises featuring destinations like the blue-domed island of Santorini, the dramatic Bay of Kotor and the bustling port of Kuşadası. These are packaged with free stays in cities like Athens and Istanbul, where history stretches back for millennia.

Explore packages here.

4. The Canary Islands

You’ll find Smart Packages designed to provide a respite from Britain’s gloomiest months with an escape to this Spanish archipelago, which is often called the ‘Islands of Eternal Spring.’

Winter sun isn’t the only draw, either, with the diverse ecosystems of Tenerife, vast beaches of Fuerteventura, lively nightlife of Gran Canaria and volcanic vineyards of Lanzarote. Book a cruise-and-stay package and you can experience a medley of islands, then immerse yourself in one on an extended stay.

Explore packages here.

5. Northern Europe

Each summer, more travellers are opting for ‘cool-cations’, which essentially means swapping too-hot-to-handle destinations for more temperate climates. Cruise Nation has a line-up of cruise-and-stay holidays in Scandinavia and the Baltic that fit the bill.

For example, you can pair cruises of the Norwegian fjords, where rushing waterfalls tumble down sheer rock faces into crystalline waters, with cosmopolitan cities like Copenhagen, Hamburg or Amsterdam.

Explore packages here.

To find out more about Cruise Nation Smart Packages, all of which are ATOL protected and ABTA backed, head to cruisenation.com or call 0333 455 8569. Note that Toureka holidays are currently available exclusively through the call centre.