P&O Cruises says a strong increase in demand for ex-UK cruise holidays has encouraged it to add no less than seven new cruise itineraries for 2012 – all of which departs and ends right here in the United Kingdom.

These cruises will range from a three-night mini cruise on Ventura to a 29-day Caribbean cruise on Adonia. Other itineraries will include journeys to the Western Mediterranean, the Canary Islands and the Atlantic Coastline.

The good news is that the seven new ex-UK cruises form part of the company’s 175th Anniversary Sale, which means you can get as much as 10% discount if you book a cabin before the 29th February next year. In total the sale includes 249 cruises listed in the company’s Summer 2012 and Winter 2012/13 brochures.

The news means that from winter 2012, Oceana, Adonia and Oriana will cruise year-round from Southampton. These cruises will vary from two to 35 nights.

The Passenger Shipping Association recently conducted research that showed that last year ex-UK cruises accounted for 40% of cruises taken by Britons. This market segment outperformed the UK cruise market as a whole and showed growth of 10%.

P&O confirmed these findings with a survey from their own Facebook page, where 40% of respondents said they preferred cruises that started in Southampton. The reason given by most of them was the fact that “the holiday starts as soon as you arrive.” The second biggest reason cited was that Southampton had no baggage restrictions.