TOURISM chiefs in Cumbria are bidding to make a big splash in the cruise market by attracting more liners and thousands of extra visitors to the county.

If successful, it could provide a welcome shot in the arm for Cumbria's tourism industry and have spin-off benefits for the county's economy as a whole.

Terry Toohey will be at the helm of the new venture after being appointed director of cruise development by Cumbria Tourist Board.

Mr Toohey flew the flag for Cumbria at a major event in Liverpool this week for cruise liner operators from across Europe and America.

He was joined at the event, called the Seatrade Cruise House Party, by CTB chief executive Chris Collier and Chris Clouter, port operations manager for Associated British Ports in Barrow.

They highlighted the fact that the county's landscape, culture and heritage had led to Cumbria being named as a top 50 world destination.

Research has suggested that if ten cruise liners a year were to call into Cumbria, it would create around 80 jobs and generate a potential spend of more than £3 million.

South Africa-born Mr Toohey is spearheading a CTB drive to attract ten ocean liners a year by 2010.

Mr Toohey, who has experience in both the shipping and tourism sectors, said: "The cruise industry is constantly seeking new and exciting destinations which will appeal to their customers. Cumbria the Lake District not only meets but exceeds the majority of the criteria sought by the cruise liners for a cruise call."

Employed as a consultant, Mr Toohey is also chairman of Cruise UK, a VisitBritain initiative aimed at attracting more cruise traffic to the country's ports, and marketing chairman of Cruise Europe, a marketing association representing more than 85 ports in north west Europe.

Mr Toohey added: "As a result of these activities, I have become well acquainted with the cruise companies and specifically their destination planning personnel."

Chris Collier welcomed the appointment, saying: "The cruise shipping industry is currently in the middle of a five-year growth cycle which is witnessing the delivery of a brand new major cruise vessel on a monthly basis."

The growth in cruising has seen the number of liner passengers entering UK ports rise by 55 per cent to 227,000 between 2000 and 2003.

Increased competition has seen more operators targeting north western Europe, including the UK and Ireland.

"Rather than just observing those vessels bypassing our region, we are launching a Cumbria cruise initiative to increase cruise calls to our ports," she added.