Following a drop in profits last year, Norwegian Cruise Line has bounced back with much stronger figures for 1999.
The average price of NCL cruises booked for 1999 has increased from ú1,300 in 1998 to ú1,900 in 1999 following a change of marketing policy by the company.
UK and Continental Europe executive director Bill Ellerington said: “We haven’t put our prices up, but instead we have focused our marketing on the higher-priced products in our programme such as the Alaskan cruises and the ex-UK cruises to the Baltic.”
Cheaper products, such as Caribbean flycruises, are still the company’s top sellers in the UK market but these are also being booked at higher prices following the end of NCL’s links with Thomson.
Ellerington said: “Thomson packaging Norwegian Sea out of the Dominican Republic meant that NCL was back as the leading Caribbean flycruise operator in the UK last year but it was at a cost to our yields.”
The average cruise price at the time stood at its lowest figure since 1992 and this coincided with a decision made by NCL in the US to concentrate on yields rather than increasing passenger numbers.
The corporate decision was prompted by continuing disappointing financial results. After making a profit of just $1m in 1997, the company slipped back again in 1998, losing $2.6m despite increasing revenues by nearly 18%. Its major rivals, Carnival, Royal Caribbean International and P&O all reported record profits and both Carnival and P&O Cruises have recently been linked with possible takeover bids for NCL.
UK and Continental Europe head of sales Nick Sharps said: “For the UK market, we set a lower target for passenger numbers this year but a much higher one for revenue. We were behind both at the turn of the year but sales picked up well in January and February and we are now ahead of both targets.”
The line introduces a new ship, Norwegian Sky, this summer. Ellerington said: “There has been a lot of interest already and we are planning a series of on-board events for travel agents when it comes to the UK for three days in August before its maiden voyage, a round-Britain cruise which then goes on to Norway.”
Norwegian Majesty also returns to the fleet this month following its ‘stretching’, the third NCL ship to have its capacity increased in the last year.
Plans for building more new ships remain on ice. An order for one vessel with options for three more was placed and then postponed last year but new NCL president Geir Aune has suggested that the one-ship order could be reinstated before the end of this year.
A decision on whether to switch Norwegian Crown to the Orient Lines brand which NCL bought last year, is expected before the end of this month.
The ship is one of two operating for NCL in Bermuda during the summer and the line needs to find a replacement to fulfil its contract with the Bermudan authorities.
NCL is not renewing its charter of Leeward, which has been making short Bahamas cruises, after September and is negotiating the chartering out of Norwegian Dynasty.
In the UK, it is testing a computer reservation system linked to Galileo and Sabre which is designed for tour operators and cruise specialist agents to access NCL’s cruise-only prices.
Sharps said: “This should be rolled out by the summer. But, unlike some of our rivals, we are still very much interested in being racked and sold by the multiples. We are also customising our Internet site, which is geared to the US, for the UK market. This should also be up and running by the summer but it is for information only.”