Cruise passenger arrivals in Malta fell by over 45 per cent in February, with 6,195 visitors arriving.

This compares to a figure of 11,369 recorded in the same period last year, according to the National Statistics Office.

The figures showed that cruise passengers continued to drop from the 14,180 registered in February 2009.

The bulk of this year’s passengers – 6,185 – were in transit with only 10 embarking or landing in Malta.

Three cruise liners made port in February compared to five the previous year.

Cruise passengers from non-EU countries outnumbered those from the EU who went down to 2,022, a drop of 70 per cent.