Clia will hold its 2024 conference in Southampton from May 23-25.
The conference, which will be the 16th annual event, will include ship visits, conference sessions, a trade fair and gala dinner.
The first day will be a full day of conference sessions, which will be held at a land-based venue instead of on board a ship as it has done in previous years, followed by an evening trade fair.
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Six ships will be docked in Southampton across the three-day period, four of which will be appearing for the first time at a Clia conference.
On day two of the conference, delegates will have a choice of visiting either Cunard’s new ship Queen Anne, Silversea’s Silver Dawn or Princess Cruises’ Sky Princess, followed by either MSC Virtuosa, P&O Cruises’ Iona or Fred Olsen’s Borealis on day three.
Clia will also hold an optional day of training for new-to-cruise agents on May 22, following the “great success” of the pilot day at the 2023 conference, which saw 160 delegates attend.
Details of the conference theme and keynote speakers will be announced nearer the time.
Andy Harmer, Clia UK & Ireland managing director, told Travel Weekly the 2024 conference will be the associations “biggest yet” and he is hoping to exceed last year’s “record” number of delegates.
“Our 2024 conference will be our biggest yet, with more ships, an extended land programme on offer, as well as the optional training day for agents just starting out on their cruise sales journey,” he said.
“Last year was our biggest conference to date with 800 delegates and we would love to see more people and break all records in 2024.
“The conference continues to be our highest-rated event and it’s a fantastic opportunity for the whole industry to come together, regardless of whether you’re interested in expedition, river or ocean, we will cover it all.
“We’re really excited by the ship line-up and the vessels we’ve got attending offer delegates a real mix of styles which reflect the opportunities in cruise generally.
“The first-hand insight agents gain from ship visits is unbeatable, while the networking opportunities on offer over the event will be invaluable.
“We can’t wait to welcome partners from across the trade once again.”
Angus Struthers, vice-president marketing & sales at Cunard, said: “We know that nothing quite beats first-hand experience of a ship when selling Cunard voyages, and the Clia Conference next year provides a fantastic opportunity for even more agents to get on board Cunard’s new ship Queen Anne very early in her maiden season.
“We think that agents will be incredibly impressed by the new luxury designs and experiences that Queen Anne offers as the latest generation of the Cunard line, and we can’t wait to welcome them on board.
“The Clia Conference is one of the highlights of the trade calendar and we couldn’t be more thrilled to showcase Cunard’s newest ship at this event.”