Cruise bouncing back as agents report sales spike


Harry Kemble


Cruise sales are bouncing back quicker than anticipated as ships return to service and new vessels enter the market, agents report. Sixteen ocean ships – including


Royal Caribbean International’s 6,998-passenger Wonder of the Seas and MSC Cruises’ 5,079-passenger World Europa – are due to launch next year, according to trade body Clia. Odyssey of the Seas was named


in Fort Lauderdale, US, last week and parent Royal Caribbean Group expects 50 of its brands’ 61 ships to be operating before 2022. Carnival Cruise Line expects all 22 of its ships to return to service by the spring, with more than 50% of parent Carnival Corporation’s fleet capacity back last month. Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings,


parent of NCL, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises, expects to be back to full service by April 1, up from 40% of its capacity at the end of September. Oasis Travel managing director


Sandra Corkin reported “a real upturn” in cruise bookings at the Northern Irish agency in the past four weeks. She said cruise was now


CV Villas boosts trade team with three recruits


CV Villas has made three appointments to its trade team: Madeleine Hubble (top), who most recently worked for Virgin Holidays; Matthew Corcoran, who moves from The Original Tour; and Bournemouth University tourism management graduate Emily Waters. CV is also to launch a portal for agency bookings.


6 18 NOVEMBER 2021


MSC’s World Europa is one of 16 ships set to launch next year


accounting for 40% of business, up from 33% in the same four-week period in 2019, with more than half of bookings in the past two months for departures before May. She said “the bounce-back is


quicker than I expected”, and predicted “a lot of opportunities” in the coming months, including from customers “who have not used agents for years”. Michele Dance, owner of


Eastleigh-based Ocean World Travel, said business remained “way down” on 2019 but agreed booking levels were increasing rapidly. “I cannot believe the speed at


which it’s happened,” she said. “The spike in bookings has put


us in a much more comfortable place because we’re getting balances paid right now. Almost overnight we went from a worrying place to a safe place.” Dance said almost all enquiries


were late bookings and reported “a lot of money out there”, noting her sales team had recently booked a Seabourn cruise in March worth £36,000. Cruise Circle managing director


Jason Daniels cautioned that the agency was still dealing with “the last round of cancellations” but said “it should be positive new business from here on in” with lines “ramping up” marketing activity as ships resume


operations. iOdyssey of the Seas naming, page 8


BA registers Euroflyer as name for Gatwick short-haul offshoot


British Airways has registered BA Euroflyer as the name of its new Gatwick-based short-haul offshoot set to operate from next year. The name has been registered with Companies House following an agreement between BA and a number of unions over staffing for the carrier. Final talks with ground handling staff are expected to be concluded soon.


Former cabin crew hope new agency will take off


Former airline cabin crew have launched a home-based travel agency after fearing for their jobs during the Covid pandemic. Doors2Manual has joined the


Hays Travel Independence Group and will serve customers by phone, video link and email. The initial four crew-turned-


agents are Laura Reynolds and Janna Beech, who both worked for Virgin Atlantic, ex-British Airways crew member Elaine Graham and Fiona Mallinson, who worked for Titan Airways. The agency is already taking


bookings. Two more crew are set to join within the next few weeks, with “several more” to follow ahead of peaks. By the end of the first quarter of 2022, Doors2Manual hopes to have a team of 20. Director and former


Hoseasons sales chief Sally Henry, who is handling Doors2Manual’s launch, said: “The crew’s passion and love for travel resonates strongly and it’s fantastic we keep this talent and knowledge in the industry.” Natasha Marson, head of


Hays Travel IG, added: “Right from our initial contact with Doors2Manual, I was excited by their ideas, catchy name and unique crew culture.”


Hotelplan UK sells Flexiski to parent of operator SkiWeekends


Tailor-made premium ski short-break operator Flexiski has become a sister brand of SkiWeekends. Previously part of the Hotelplan UK travel group, Flexiski has been bought by SkiWeekends parent company Ski Elements. Hotelplan UK, which operates the Inghams, Esprit Ski, Santa’s Lapland, Explore and Inntravel brands, bought Flexiski from Travelopia for an undisclosed sum in May 2019.


travelweekly.co.uk


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