Stelios to launch cruise website

As the Queen Mary 2 liner prepares to set sail on its debut voyage, EasyJet founder Stelios Haji-Ioannou has unveiled plans for a low-cost cruise service. Launching in early 2005, the online cruise booking service - called EasyCruise - will offer cabins from £29 a night. The pricing for EasyCruise will vary according to demand and how early you book. The idea is that customers can cruise for as many or as few days and nights as they wish. Instead of all-inclusive cruise packages, customers will buy food and beverages from a ship's restaurant and shops on a pay-as-you-go basis. Customers must also take their own bedding and toiletries. According to EasyGroup, the new service will appeal to a much wider customer base than existing cruise liners such as backpackers and families. EasyGroup chairman, Stelios Haji-Ioannou, said: " EasyCruise is cheaper and more pleasant than the bus as a means of getting from one part of the Mediterranean to another. The average family of two adults and two children, previously put off by keeping the children occupied for a full seven days at sea, can stay on board for a couple of nights." Exact ports for the EasyCruise destinations have not yet been finalised but is expected to travel to the western Mediterranean. Easy Cruise will follow the launch of EasyBus, EasyDorm and EasyPizza - all expected in 2004. Get Web User magazine every fortnight - subscribe here now