Nearly one in five cruise holiday customers cannot swim

Nearly one in five cruise holiday customers cannot swim, according to a survey.

Most of the non-swimmers do not think being able to keep their heads above water is important, the poll by bonvoyage.co.uk found.

Of those attaching no importance to swimming ability, most are unconcerned as they know lifejackets are available, with 52% of the non-swimmers saying they feel "completely safe" even when surrounded by water.

A total of 1,562 tourists who had taken a cruise holiday were surveyed, with 19% saying they cannot swim.

A third would happily learn to swim if it became a requirement of a cruise holiday, while 24% would refuse to learn.

A total of 11% had taken the plunge and learned to swim, simply because they were taking a cruise.

Bonvoyage.co.uk cruise development manager Stephanie Curtin said: "It was quite surprising to find out that some people who go on cruise holidays don't actually know how to swim.

"The idea of being surrounded by water would make you think that it would be a good idea to learn."