News & Articles
Remain informed of the latest news, developments and innovations. Access to some articles is based on your regional membership.
Filters
Clear Filters
Requires Login
-
MSC Unveils The Future Of Cruising MSC Cruises New Brand Campaign ShowcasingMSC Unveils The Future Of Cruising MSC Cruises New Brand Campaign Showcasing
MSC Cruises, the contemporary brand of the Cruise Division of MSC Group, launches a new global brand campaign entitled “Discover the future of cruising”, which will roll-out in more than 30 countries through a multi-channel global marketing campaign including TV, out of home, print media, digital and social media. With this new campaign, MSC Cruises will show how sustainability is at the beating heart of its daily activities and long-term growth strategy. The brand concept asks what does the future of cruising look like? This question is the leitmotiv of the whole campaign. The bold and distinctive creative concept is about MSC Cruises’ commitment to be the future of cruising, showcasing the fleet's environmental performance with glimpses of life on board, in a warm, charming and engaging way. From the sustainable technologies integrated on the brand’s ships, to the unique shows and entertainment, to innovative restaurant concepts, MSC Cruises is pushing the boundaries of the holiday experience at sea. The TV spot was filmed on board MSC Cruises’ first LNG-powered and most environmentally advanced ship to date, MSC World Europa, which came into service late last year. While focusing on some of the unique environmental technologies and solutions of this new ship, the campaign also demonstrates the wider and long-standing sustainability commitment and progress across the brand’s fleet of 21 vessels and the broader Cruise Division of MSC Group. It is also the first campaign in the industry that squarely focuses on a brand’s sustainability commitment and makes it central to its engagement with consumers, travel partners and other stakeholders from the broader society. 20 January, 2023 -
Carnival brands celebrate agents at UK Cruise Awards
Carnival brands celebrate agents at UK Cruise Awards
Carnival UK brands honoured the travel trade and industry figures last night during the annual UK Cruise Awards. The event, now in its seventh year, recognises cruise specialist agents for their business and loyalty to six Carnival Corporation & PLC brands – Carnival Cruise Line, Cunard, Holland America Line, P&O Cruises, Princess Cruises, and Seabourn. More than 200 travel partners attended the ceremony, which was held at Madame Tussauds in London. The awards were hosted by TV presenter Mark Durden-Smith. Each brand gave two awards, the first for ‘Partnership Development’ and the second for ‘Outstanding Contribution’. In addition, four multi-brand awards were given for ‘Innovative Marketing Campaign’, ‘Outstanding Customer Care’, ‘Rising Star’, and ‘Outstanding Contribution’. Dame Irene Hays was honoured with ‘Outstanding Contribution’ for her achievements and dedication in supporting all six brands. The winners were as follows: Carnival Cruise Line Partnership Achievement Award – Cruise 1st Highly Commended – Barrhead Travel Outstanding Contribution – Iglu Cruise Highly Commended – Cruise Nation Cunard Partnership Achievement Award – Iglu Cruise Highly Commended – Hays Travel Outstanding Contribution – ROL Cruise Highly Commended – Imagine Cruising Holland America Line Partnership Achievement Award – Trailfinders Highly Commended – Iglu Cruise Outstanding Contribution – Canadian Affair Highly Commended – Stewart Travel P&O Cruises Partnership Achievement Award – Travel Village Highly Commended – Fred Olsen Travel Outstanding Contribution – Hays Travel Highly Commended – Bolsover Cruise Club Princess Cruises Partnership Achievement Award – Travel Counsellors Highly Commended – Cruise.co.uk Outstanding Contribution – Reader Offers Highly Commended – Iglu Cruise Seabourn Partnership Achievement Award – Six Star Cruises Highly Commended – Travel Counsellors Outstanding Contribution – The Sovereign Cruise Club Highly Commended – Trailfinders Multi-Brand Innovative Marketing Campaign – Imagine Cruising Outstanding Customer Care – Bolsover Cruise Club Rising Star – Gemma Pallister, ROL Cruise Outstanding Contribution – Dame Irene Hays 19 January, 2023 -
Celebrity Cruises recognises valued agent partners and industry greats at 2023
Celebrity Cruises recognises valued agent partners and industry greats at 2023
Today, Celebrity Cruises rewarded the exceptionally hard work of travel partners and celebrated industry icons at its annual Travel Agent Appreciation Awards. The luxury cruise line honoured a host of valued partners in recognition of how their efforts have directly impacted the business’s success over the past 12 months and handed out a special award to Dame Irene Hays DBE DL, of Hays Travel, for her outstanding contribution to travel. Held on 12th January at Searcy’s at The Gherkin, the luxury event saw over 70 travel partners come together and a total of eight awards presented to key groups and individuals to celebrate their commitment to Celebrity Cruises and to the wider industry. The awards were hosted by Celebrity Cruises’ Vice President & Managing Director for EMEA, Jo Rzymowska, and Sales Director for UK & Ireland, Claire Stirrup. The afternoon’s winners, who are each the recipient of an Above & Beyond Award, are made up of game-changers, innovators, those who have gone above and beyond, as well as partners that have reached new growth milestones and found new ways to market. The full list of Celebrity Cruises’ Travel Agent Appreciation Awards winners includes: Cruise.co.uk - commended for their innovative go to market campaigns, creative approach and product planning Hays Travel - noted for their approach to investing in training and developing their people, to deepen their Celebrity Cruises product knowledge Love It Book It - who have focused on their TV channel to drive sales and showcase Celebrity Cruises, creating and investing in video footage to bring the brand to life Midcounties Co-Operative- for deepening their partnership with Celebrity Cruises by dedicating extra resource to drive Celebrity brand awareness and significantly increase their bookings Stewart Travel - for developing a bespoke Celebrity Cruises strategic plan which has resulted in exponential growth, and investing in their sellers to experience the product and build their knowledge of the brand The Cruise Village - called out as a company for going above and beyond to deliver personalised service and attract new guests to Celebrity Cruises Travel Counsellors - translating the real value of a Celebrity Cruises’ relaxed luxury resort at sea experience to their customers, they are heralded for selling on value and not on price Outstanding contribution award: Dame Irene Hays DBE DL - an ambassador for the travel industry, an exceptional leader whose influence is immeasurable, and most notably, a passionate advocate for championing young people to be the best they can be and to get the most they can out of life. Jo Rzymowska, Vice President & Managing Director, EMEA, for Celebrity Cruises said: “2022 was an incredible year for Celebrity Cruises with the launch of the industry-leading Celebrity Beyond in the UK, and the news that a stunning Edge-Series ship, Celebrity Apex, will be homeporting in Southampton from 2024. These achievements are testament to the brand’s confidence in the UK market, owing to the incredible support of our travel partners. We’re also particularly encouraged by the strong start we are seeing to Wave already, and remain positive for a great year ahead in 2023. The Travel Agent Appreciation Awards are our opportunity to say thank you to our hugely valued travel agent community, as we simply couldn’t do it without them.” For more details travel agents should visit celebritycentral.co.uk 12 January, 2023 -
Last Month In Cruise December 2022 Written By Sara Macefield
Last Month In Cruise December 2022 Written By Sara Macefield
Forget winding down for Christmas. Last month the cruise industry dialled up the excitement with more glitzy ship christenings and sparkling new arrivals that promise to pave the way for an all-action year in 2023, with new itineraries and the return of Asia bringing added spice. It’s all in a name Leading the procession of star-spangled celebrations at 2022’s final naming events was yet another mega-ship from MSC Cruises, just a matter of weeks after its previous one was named in Doha. This time, it was MSC Seascape, the line’s new flagship which was christened in New York, and among its many features is the largest and most luxurious Yacht Club in the MSC fleet. Just a few days later another leviathan, Royal Caribbean International’s Wonder of the Seas – the world’s largest ship – was named in Florida’s Port Canaveral. Newcomers make their mark Making an entrance was P&O Cruises’ latest mega-ship Arvia, whose early-morning arrival brightened up a gloomy December day in Southampton. In a break with tradition, the 5,200-passenger new-build will be named in a beachside ceremony in Barbados during its maiden Caribbean season on March 16 – the first time such an event has taken place – and broadcast live online to a global audience. Kooky cruise line Virgin Voyages welcomed its third ship Resilient Lady from Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri. The latest “Lady Ship” will embark on its inaugural Greek isles sailings from Piraeus in May. Meanwhile Scenic is preparing for the naming of its second Discovery Yacht, Scenic Eclipse II, in Malaga on June 3 with the announcement that its godmother will be one of NASA’s first female astronauts Dr Kathy Sullivan. British boom time Hold on to your hats because this industry shows no sign of slowing down. Princess Cruises announced that 2024 would mark the biggest UK and Europe season in its history with 162 departures across five ships, including new Sphere-class Sun Princess whose European maiden season includes an inaugural overnight stay in Southampton. Princess will also have its largest and longest round-trip Southampton deployment with Sky Princess, Regal Princess and Caribbean Princess. Next year also marks the arrival of Cunard’s latest queen as Queen Anne embarks on its maiden season from May 3, while in 2025, Norwegian Cruise Line has confirmed its current newest ship Norwegian Prima will continue to be based in Southampton for summer sailings between the port and Iceland. Eastern promise As Asia starts to surface in cruise line itineraries, Scenic is going big in Japan this year with its first dedicated Japan season on Scenic Eclipse with a diverse schedule of sailings focusing on nature, history and traditions. Meanwhile Travelmarvel is debuting a cruise along the Lower Ganges that start and ends in Kolkata. Closer to home and Emerald Cruises is already looking ahead to next Christmas after adding two more festive market sailings on the Danube and Rhine rivers next November and December, while CroisiEurope is giving customers something to celebrate by featuring two of Europe’s most famous carnivals at Venice and Cadiz on its cruises along the Po and Guadalquivir rivers. 06 January, 2023 -
Silversea Cruises relaunches trade incentive Silver Advocates for 2023
Silversea Cruises relaunches trade incentive Silver Advocates for 2023
Leading ultra-luxury cruise line Silversea Cruises will relaunch its reward and recognition programme for travel agents in 2023. Silversea Advocates is designed to celebrate exceptional work. Running from January 1 to December 31, 2023, the programme will recognise eight advocates monthly for a variety of reasons that span from sales performance to completing a successful marketing promotion, or even running a Silversea event. Silversea’s Regional Sales Managers will submit their nomination monthly, with the advocates receiving 100 Silversea Agent Rewards points, which agents can redeem from the online voucher code section featuring Virgin Wines, Amazon and Love2shop to use for thousands of products. Each advocate will also receive a plaque and an invitation to a prestigious event in February 2024, with one lucky advocate awarded a suite for two on board a Silversea cruise. Peter Shanks, Managing Director UK & Ireland, Silversea Cruises, said: “We are delighted to be relaunching Silver Advocates in the New Year. Our travel partners are extremely important to Silversea, playing a key role for us and our guests. We are pleased to offer these added benefits to express our appreciation for their hard work.” Silversea is relaunching Silver Advocates in addition to its already strong range of initiatives aimed at supporting travel partners. These include Marketing Central, an online suite of marketing resources and sales tools for agents – a convenient, one-stop shop for all marketing needs, accessed via My.Silversea.com and webinars by Silversea, a short informative video series, hosted by Silversea team members globally to keep travel agent partners abreast of activities, new products and promotions – found on webinars.silversea.com. 04 January, 2023