Carnival Cruise Line plans to involve former Love Island star Dr Alex George in agent-focused events on board its ships next year.
Dr Alex took an eight-day Caribbean cruise in April on Carnival Horizon with his girlfriend Amelia Bath, who appeared in ITV2 show Ibiza Weekender in 2016.
Luke Smith, Carnival Cruise Line’s head of international sales, revealed Dr Alex will join agents onboard the 5,200-passenger Mardi Gras and possibly its other two ships deployed in Europe next summer.
Around 600 UK agents were invited by Carnival Cruise Line at last month’s Clia Conference to see Mardi Gras when it calls at Southampton on September 9, 2020.
Smith said: “The plan is to get Alex involved in Mardi Gras and the European events that we have got throughout 2020.
“Our aim is to target that younger crowd. We want agents to piggyback on to Alex and get Carnival out there.
“Where we are going to grow is by encouraging new-to-cruise couples to take a cruise either as a replacement to their resort holidays which they currently take or as an add-on.”
Instagram posts and stories uploaded by Dr Alex from the Carnival Horizon sailing in April attracted more than four million impressions, Smith said.
“It has worked really well from a brand perspective and what we are trying to achieve,” Smith said, adding: “We feel that Alex and Amelia can help us target that new-to-cruise audience and they are the best option for us.”
Dr Alex said his and Amelia’s experience onboard showed that there was “something for everybody” on Carnival Horizon.
Recalling the Carnival Cruise Line sailing, Dr Alex said: “This was my first time on a cruise ship. I did not know what to expect.
“Everyone was there to enjoy themselves and get away. My perceptions beforehand were that a cruise holiday is not as exciting as some other holidays and they were for elderly people.
“There was so much to do – we were never bored. If we wanted to chill out we could or if we wanted to do the Sky Ride [an onboard ride suspended in the air] we could.”
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