QUICK QUOTES: THEY SAID IT...
Giles Hawke, Avalon Waterways and Clia UK
Richard Twynam, Azamara Club Cruises
Tony Roberts, Princess Cruises and Clia UK
Ben Bouldin, Royal Caribbean
Chris Edgington on the chances of river operators being bought by ocean lines “The sailings might both be on ships but they are very different holidays and therefore from our perspective we’re sticking to what we do [ocean cruises].”
Bernard Carter, Oceania Cruises
Antonio Paradiso, MSC Cruises
Chris Edgington, P&O Cruises
Chris Hackney, Marella Cruises
a heatwave slump’ 32
New expedition cruise ships on order by 2022
Royal Caribbean UK and Ireland managing director Ben Bouldin said investment by Cruise1st as well as by other online agents such as
Cruise.co.uk and Iglu suggested there were ample opportunities for both agents and lines to grow sales. “Those best equipped to take a slice of the pie will succeed,” he said, adding that Clia training and tools provided by cruise lines had meant it was easier for agents to sell a cruise now than five years ago.
New cruise lines
This summer, Virgin Voyages unveiled plans to name its first
ship Scarlet Lady at an eye-catching event at the Fincantieri shipyard in Genoa, where Virgin founder Sir Richard Branson danced on tables in front of the national media. The event came a month after
luxury hotel chain Ritz-Carlton announced it would build up to five more yachts, beyond the three 298-passenger vessels it has on order and which launch from 2020. Hawke welcomed the news.
He said: “[New cruise suppliers] get more people thinking about cruise. Once people think about it they explore the other options available.” He added that Branson was “a shot in the arm” for the cruise industry. Richard Twynam, Azamara Club Cruises’ managing director for the UK, Ireland and EMEA, said: “Branson is a pretty important travel influencer. He influenced the airline space and I am sure he can do it with cruise.”
Expedition expansion
The expedition cruise sector has seen significant growth activity. Seabourn signed a letter of
intent with shipbuilders earlier this summer to build a pair of luxury expedition ships, for delivery in 2021 and 2022. Thirty-two expedition ships are
now on order for delivery by 2022, raising questions about whether supply will outstrip demand. “The jury is out a little
bit,” Twynam said. “Can the [expedition] sector sustain its price points? Typically, in expedition they are higher.” Roberts said he believed that
despite growth in expedition capacity, the sector was “not hitting demand issues at this point”. Hackney said: “Once we get those customers on cruise ships, you tend to get them back time and time again. The challenge is, can we attract the customers?”
Giles Hawke on overcapacity in the expedition cruise sector “For years, growth has been exponential but there have been these questions about overcapacity. But we keep growing and cruise companies keep being profitable and we keep taking cruise holidays.”
Andy Harmer on industry reaction to passenger Kay Longstaff going overboard on Norwegian Star “I think the interesting outcome from that story was how many cruisers took to social media saying ‘that cannot happen’.”
Ben Bouldin on why agents should sell cruise over land-based holidays “We are higher-margin. Travel agents will make more from cruise than selling any other sector. That is partly because we have got a lot to sell to keep this industry going.”
Andy Harmer on the support that cruise lines give travel agents “We should not underestimate the support that cruise lines give to travel agents. Cruise is like no other sector. The cruise lines offer the learning, the opportunities to see ships and sail on ships.”
20 September 2018
travelweekly.co.uk 19
PICTURES: SHUTTERSTOCK; STEVE DUNLOP; MATT SPRAKE; PHIL GAMMON; SIMON HARVEY
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