preview THE SPEAKERS


STUART PERL Job: AmaWaterways UK managing director, and chair of Clia’s river


cruise working group Background: Perl opened the line’s first UK office in 2016. He has held senior roles at Seabourn, Cunard and Peter Deilmann


River & Ocean Cruises. Talking points: The growth of river cruising in the UK market.


WALTER


LITTLEJOHN Job: Vice-president and managing director,


Crystal River Cruises Background: Littlejohn joined Crystal in 2016 to lead its new river cruise division, after running his own travel agency and working


for AmaWaterways. Talking points: The next generation of river cruising.


JANE ARCHER


Job: Cruise journalist Background: Archer has been covering the cruise industry in trade and consumer publications for


almost 20 years. Talking points: Setting the scene and exploring how river cruising has changed in recent years.


GILES HAWKE Job: Chief executive officer, Cosmos and


Avalon Waterways Background: Hawke has been in the travel industry for more than 25 years, previously holding roles at Carnival UK


and MSC Cruises. Talking points:


Sustainability in the industry.


BEN NEALON Job: Client


partnerships director for travel, Mail Metro Media


Background: Nealon has been leading client partnerships within the cruise


sector for three years. Talking points:


Research into the river cruise sector and consumer insights.


KRISTIN KARST Job: Executive vice-president,


AmaWaterways Background: Karst was a co-founder of AmaWaterways and remains one of its owners. She promotes river cruising to agents, group leaders and


other organisations. Talking points:


Up-and-coming river cruise destinations.


MATTHIAS LUTTER Job: Head of


new-builds, A-Rosa Background: Based in


Rostock, Germany, Lutter joined A-Rosa in January to oversee the company’s fleet expansion and


refurbishment. Talking points:


Sustainability in the industry.


DEBRA FOX Job: Chief


commercial officer,


APT Travel Group Background: Fox, who has worked for APT for 14 years, heads up teams responsible for trade partnerships, sales and marketing strategies, and


customer experience. Talking points: Telling the story of river cruising.


BEN WIRZ Job: Managing


director, Uniworld Background: Wirz heads up operations in Switzerland for Uniworld Boutique River Cruises and


U River Cruises. Talking points:


Sustainability in the river cruise sector.


travelweekly.co.uk/cruise


November 2019 9


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48