Cruiseline bids to lift profile with agent trips

Cruiseline bids to lift profile with agent trips

Royal caribbean international

Report by JANEARCHER

ROYALCaribbean International hosted more than 2,000 travel agents on two cruises to nowhere from Southampton to raise the profile of its new ship, Explorer of the Seas, in the UK trade.

Royal Caribbean Internationaland Celebrity Cruises chairman and chief executive Richard Fain said 25% of passengers on sister ship Voyager of the Seas, launched last November, are non-US and the number of international customers is expected to rise again for Explorer of the Seas.

He added that the largest proportion of international visitors are from the UK.

“These mega-ships have big appeal in the UK,so it is important to get agents to experience the product.”

“This is expensive but it will pay off by educating agents.”

Fain said the UK client base is small, at 6% of its total 1.7 million passengers last year but growing rapidly and far ahead of the rest of Europe.

At 140,028 tons, Explorer of the Seas is the largest ship in the Royal Caribbean International fleet with capacity for 3,844 passengers, or 3,114 based on double occupancy.

Facilities include the Shipshape Spa and Fitness Centre, offering a sauna and steamroom and shops, a café, pub and champagne bar.

Sports facilities include an in-line skating track, jogging track, miniature golf, ice rink and rock-climbing wall. The vessel sails to New York for its naming ceremony on Saturday, before starting seven-night Eastern Caribbean cruises from Miami on October 28, with prices from £1,010 per person.