Northstar

www.travelweekly-asia.com | 11 FUTURE OF TRAVEL C R U I S E Cruise industry leaders believe that repeat cruisers will lead the way back from the abyss, with more than a little help from travel agents. By Ian Jarrett Cruise industry without travel agents would be like pancakes without maple syrup, says NCL's Del Rio L eaders of the world's international cruise lines are convinced that cruising will be back as big as ever. They just don't know when. Or quite where. But they know who will get them there. Travel agents. "We believe in a strong agency distribution system," said Frank Del Rio, president and CEO of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd, in an interview with Travel Weekly USA. "Before the pandemic, our company had the highest yield in the industry, which meant that travel agents were earning the most by selling our three brands (Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises). "I know what they're going through, and we've got to be able to do the things we need to do to make sure they survive. The cruise industry without travel agents would be like pancakes without maple syrup. It just doesn't work." Carnival Corp CEO Arnold Donald tells a similar story. He cites the large base of loyal supporters who made up the bulk of the 30 million who cruised last year and strong demand for bookings through 2021. "I think in the early going there will be enough people who love cruising to fill the ships," Mr Donald said. "The industry was wildly successful before this and I'm quite confident we will return to that level of success over time." RCL, parent company of Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, Azamara and Silversea, says its 2021 booked position is "within historical range" when compared with the same period last year. Industry leaders see demand Royal Caribbean International president and CEO Michael Bayley, in a call with investors, praised the response from the cruise line's loyalty members saying, "I think we've really seen surprising demand from our loyalty members, and remember we've got close to 20 million loyalty members. "Their response to various promotions that we've put into the market, just to understand what the demand looks like, has been surprisingly positive." NCL's Mr Del Rio is seeing, strong pent-up demand. "2021 bookings are only slightly behind where 2020 bookings were a year ago," he said. "Prior to coronavirus, 2020 was going to be, by far, the best year ever. And now, with travel agents not working at full strength, with our sales and marketing teams shut down, with the terrible news cycle that we've gone through, we can still say that we're only slightly behind, and at modest reduction - mid-single its 'Cruise As You Wish' assurance booking policy. Until Oct 30, 2020 all new and existing Dream Cruises and Star Cruises bookings made during this period can be cancelled up to 48 hours prior to sailing with 100% future cruise credit to be redeemed for any Dream Cruises or Star Cruises sailing embarking on or before Mar 31, 2021. "With the new extension dates, more guests will have the option, flexibility and peace of mind when cruising with us, especially during these uncertain and challenging times," said Michael Goh, president of Dream Cruises and head of international sales, Genting Cruise Lines. Genting Cruise Lines introduced a "Cruise As You Wish" assurance booking policy for its Dream Cruises and Star Cruises sailings. digits - in price. "This is a testimony to the resiliency of the customer and the efforts of the travel agents to preserve those customers." Genting Cruise Lines has also been pleased by the response to "I think we've really seen surprising demand from our loyalty members, and remember we've got close to 20 million loyalty members. Their response to various promotions that we've put into the market, just to understand what the demand looks like, has been surprisingly positive." – Michael Bayley, president & CEO, Royal Caribbean International

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