The Association of Cruise Experts (Ace) and the Passenger Shipping Association (PSA) will be renamed Clia UK in 2013 after joining up with other industry groups to form one global trade association.
The two associations are among the nine cruise industry groups which today announced that they have joined up to form an international body with a common organisation and a unified structure.
The PSA and Ace will retain their existing office in London, and PSA chairman Simon Johnson, passenger service director for P&O Ferries, confirmed that he will remain in his role during the transition period.
Among the other associations which will form the new global trade body are the European Cruise Council, Cruise Lines International Association (Clia) in America and France’s AFCC.
The new association has been created to provide increased benefits and a “globally unified voice for cruise lines, travel agents and business partners”.
For cruise lines, the new association offers a one-stop global resource on technical and regulatory issues and unified global communication and event coordination.
For travel agents, the new association is described as offering “more robust partnership programmes and networking on a broader scale”, and the PSA’s associate members will receive greater opportunities for customer and business partner development.
The new Clia organisation will be governed by a global executive committee, chaired by Howard Frank, vice chairman, chief operating officer and a member of the executive committee of Carnival Corporation.
Christine Duffy, president and chief executive of the current Cruise Lines International Association, will serve in the same roles within the new association.
PSA director Bill Gibbons said that the PSA’s ferry members are in discussion with the Chamber of Shipping, which already has many ferry companies as members, and look set to join it.
“Ferry companies are also keen to continue the successful proactive work which ahs been undertaken by the PSA to raise the profile of ferry travel through the Discover Ferries campaign,” said Gibbons.
“We have seen tremendous growth and success in the cruise industry since the PSA was formed in 1958 with the objective of promoting passenger travel by sea.
“Cruising now touches every continent and having on unified global organisation will be the natural next step in our development to ensure the industry is represented in a cohesive manner, as it continues to grow both in the UK and worldwide.
“We shall further develop our award-winning travel agent training programme under Clia UK and continue with our cruise consumer promotions activities.”
Johnson said: “This is clearly the right move for our cruise line members as the industry becomes truly global and I’m delighted that our ferry members look set to have a new home within the Camber of ~Shipping where their interests will be safeguarded.”
Duffy added: “There are immediate and longer term benefits from the new association that are extensive and wide ranging.
“It enables us to better leverage our members’ and partners’ investment in association membership while strengthening the industry’s leadership globally on issues such as safety, security, the environment, sustainability and health.
“It also allows us to consolidate industry research and to leverage promotional events and marketing communication to facilitate greater consumer interest in cruising.”