Displaying items by tag:Cruise360

The key to being a successful travel advisor now is not about sending clients information or providing multiple choices for them – they already have plenty of that online, attendees at the Cruise360 Conference in Sydney heard late last week.

We snapped a few delegates out and about at Cruise360 in Sydney last week.

• Caroline Edwards, YOU Travel & Cruise Bethlehem; Mandy Herd, YOU Travel & Cruise Orewa; Kathryn Manihera, Fortis Travel; Kiri Martin, YOU Travel & Cruise Orewa; Monett Johnston, YOU Travel & Cruise Whitianga
• Astrid Richardson, Envoyage Australia; Andrew Bowman, Guy Flynn, both NZ Travel Brokers; Danielle Galloway, Flight Centre Travel Group
• Kelly-Ann Thomas, House of Travel Lower Hutt; Anji Montgomerie, Regent Seven Seas Cruises; Fay Atkins, House of Travel Wellington City
• At the Crusie360 cocktail event in Doltone House… Julia Hindman (centre), Flight Centre NZ, with Rachel Harrigan and Lauren McAlpine, both Hapag-Lloyd Cruises
• At Cruise360 last week – Steve Labroski, itravel Australia; Steve Richards, AmaWaterways; Jeff Leckey, House of Travel
• Annabelle Brown, Alan Wilcock, both PONANT Explorations; Richard Fletcher, Fine Travel

Current economic conditions make the promotion by travel advisors of cruises’ value proposition particularly crucial, attendees at the Cruise360 conference heard yesterday.

Close to 850 people, including about 55 New Zealand travel agents, in Cruise Line International Association (CLIA) Australasia’s Cruise 360 event in Sydney late last week.

• Gavin Smith, Royal Carribean; Jessica Jones, Celebrity Cruises
• At the Cruise360 welcome function in Dolton House… Bonnie Turner, Princess Cruises; Kylie Crouch, First Travel Group; Kirsty Jensen, Our Cruise
• Hayley Thompson, YOU Travel Manly; Kate Tawhai, Travel Expert Ltd
• Gillian Seller, Explora Journeys (centre); with Richard and Clare Fletcher, both Fletcher Travel Group at the Cruise 360 trade show
• Andrea Robinson, Disney Cruises; Hayley Thompson, YOU Travel Manly; Hemal Jani, Beyond Holidays; Steph Johnson, Disney Cruises
• Andrea Robinson, Disney Cruises; Hayley Thompson, YOU Travel Manly; Hemal Jani, Beyond Holidays; Steph Johnson, Disney Cruises
• Monett Johnston, YOU Travel Whitianga; Alice Ager, Uniworld Boutique River Cruises; Julia Miles-Cassin, Cruise World at the Cruise360 trade show in Sydney on Friday

Workforce issues across a number of areas, including in the travel agency community, are the biggest challenges facing the cruise sector right now, according to panellists at the Cruise 360 conference in Sydney.

Steve Odell, senior vice-president and managing director, Asia Pacific of Regent Seven Seas Cruises and Oceania Cruises, says some of his biggest concerns are around the distribution channel.

Travel advisors should not be afraid to throw crazy ideas at their past clients and give them a nudge to travel again of they are hesitant, delegates at the Cruise Lines International Association’s (CLIA’s) Cruise 360 conference in Sydney recently were told.

Travel agents have been urged to embrace ‘shared story telling’ as a key part of their marketing on social media.