Cruise Newsletter - June 2005

This month our staff have sailed on the following ships and their reports are available by clicking on the ships name:

• Celebrity's - Constellation

Special and Great Value Charter Opportunities:

• Seabourn Pride  - Nov. 13-20, 2005 - Ft. Lauderdale - Barbados - $448.000,00

• SeaDream Yachts - call us for less than 7 day charter opportunities in 2005/6

Great group space deals for these 2005 dates:

Wind Spirit – July 30 / Piraeus - Venice

Editorial;

In a newly released report on the worldwide cruise ship industry by the British-based group Ocean Shipping Consultants, it was suggested that the lack of new vessel ordering in the past two to three years could create a cruise ship shortage by 2008. They lay the blame for the fall off on the post-millennium economic
downturn, the impact of 9/11, SARS, and a dramatically lower dollar.

We have been making this point for some time now as any regular reader of our news letter will have read, and while the report dealt with all cruise segments, it does raise questions specifically about the luxury cruise market where the industry is not only facing a loss of inventory, but also aging ships. "Right sizing the market" by Crystal and Radisson has resulted in reducing their combined capacity by almost 38%.

There are no other new builds planned for the immediate future although Crystal are working on plans for a new ship  but as it stands now no new ships are slated to enter service prior to late 2008, early 2009.

In 2004 Crystal, Radisson and Silverseas had 7,084 berths, but by next year (2006) and for the foreseeable future, it will only be 5,260.  Crystal declines from 2,964 in 2004 to 2,014 in 2008. Radisson goes from 2,764 last year to 1,890 in 2008 while Silversea stays at 1,356 berths.

These figures are worrisome for those of us involved in selling these high quality cruise ships. Not only are the number of berths falling, but the ships are not getting any younger.  In fact in an industry that is used to seeing new ships enter service almost monthly and where a new ship is considered old by the time it is three to four years old, most of these ships that make up the luxury fleets are going to looking quite ancient in 2 or 3 years time.

From a vendors view point this poses problems for our clients.  The clientele purchasing a luxury cruise is no longer the older/retired couple.  The cruise lines have had real success in shifting the image of their clientele to that of the baby boomer and industry figures show that this market segment is growing fast so loosing inventory just as the market takes off is disappointing to say the east.

I should mention that the above numbers do not include SeaDream with 220 berths, Seabourn with 624 berths, and Oceania currently with 1368 berths, as each define luxury as it relates to their brand positioning, however, depending on how you want to place them in the big picture they do provide an additional 2322 berths and Oceania's third ship will add yet another 684 berths.

Whilst we talk about losing inventory in the market place, consolidation of the smaller ship / luxury / expedition type vessels is also a concern.  Many of these smaller ships sail unique itineraries which also attract clients who can afford a "luxury" cruise price.  A good number, if not all of these smaller lines are struggling to stay or get into the black.  Fuel cost and the depreciated dollar, especially for foreign operators is causing them a lot of pain and from where we view this segment.. there is going to be a shake out which will at least temporarily reduce inventory further.

More Passport Issues

Whist traveling back and forth to Monaco for the Grand Prix our team was somewhat dismayed to see several passengers turned away from their flight - "Denied Boarding" because, even though they had valid passports, the passports were due to expire within six months of them departing the country.  Another party who was traveling on a one way ticket as he was due to be taking up a position abroad was denied boarding even though he had all the paperwork he required, but, there was no notation in his passport to the effect that he was going to be "working abroad".

Obviously, this is becoming a serious issue and it beholds all of us in the travel industry, especially those of us dealing with travelers who are inexperienced in the joys of overseas travel and all that is required in the way of passports, visa's, and sometime health cards, to be sure to check that our participants are made aware of the issues and apply for their documentation in plenty of time to make their travel dates.  I know that many Incentive Programs go down to the wire as far as the actual trip winners are concerned. Possibly a pre-winners list should be prepared and those who have a chance at making the numbers be pre-warned to make a start on getting their paperwork in order - would be one way to go.

Industry News:

In a long anticipated move, the sales forces of Princess and Cunard are being combined, with all regional sales managers and dsms now selling both brands throughout the U.S. and Canada. The integration follows the merger of the sales organizations in the U.K., Australia, and the rest of the world.
Carnival Corp view the lines as totally separate and non-competing as they believe Cunard's appeal is to a very sophisticated clientele returning to a bygone era in liners and crossings whereas Princess is positioned as a "fantastic vacation escape among premium cruise lines."
 

Ship News

Royal Caribbean recently release some interesting photo's of their ship the Enchantment of the Seas which is currently being stretched.  The new section which is going to be welded into place has three of the new and unique features designed to "kick the ship up a notch"... the four bungee trampolines, two suspension bridges, and a splash pool with water jets for the kids. The most amazing thing about the stretching is the speed in which is due to be accomplished - just one month.

Photo's here

For full description of the work in hand - see our report.
 

Holland America's - Signature of Excellence is getting excellent reviews from the various industry folk who have experienced the upgraded product delivery.  Food and wine of course was especially noted and good reviews of the "Culinary Arts Center" where noteworthy.  The new bedding also receive many compliments as did the Library with its New York Times Explorations Café, slated as the best in business, and the selection of contemporary writers and literary items in stock was praised.

New Itineraries

Holland America cruises are getting longer - they are the stretching duration of their cruises. "In general our cruises are getting longer," reports Senior VP Rick Meadows. "In 2006, we'll have more longer cruises than in 2005, and in 2007 there will be more longer cruises than in 2006. The advantage is for past guests looking for new places to go. And new places to go typically means farther places to go."  According to Meadows the change is market driven as over the next couple of years, the leading edge of boomer's will start having more time to travel, so it's a natural time to subtly lengthen deployments.

One way of achieving this is by having more so-called butterflies or figure 8 routings, and in HAL's case, these will be found in both the Caribbean and Europe. As an example, HAL's Rome ship, the new Noordam, will have one departure to the Eastern Med and then the next departure goes over to the Western Med," says Meadows. "The theory is that if you're a longer cruiser, you can take those combined cruises without repeating ports."

In this case, Rome will be scheduled as a port of call for staying passengers, not a turnaround day. "While the ship may turn in Rome, we'll have tours running for these longer cruisers that will go into Rome, see the Sistine Chapel or whatever, come back to the same cabin, and continue on the next cruise," says Meadows.

This sounds like a great idea for the small number of passengers who are doing the "butterfly" but we are concerned about the air portion of the vacation for all the remaining passengers.  As we all know, open-jaw flight itineraries are not only a headache to book, but can also be very expensive.
 

Middle East and Gulf Ports.
We have noticed a return by cruise lines to more politically sensitive spots of the world. While Iraq and Iran aren't on anyone's list of port calls in 2006, the luxury lines are calling in places that have been off most agendas in recent years, including Libya, Egypt, Syria, and Jordan. Some may say it's risky, but itineraries can be changed, of course, at any sign of trouble.  Several ships will be going through the Suez Canal and can reach ports in the Middle East, Arabian Gulf, and Indian Ocean. In addition Crystal, has a new fall itinerary to Egypt and Tripoli.

Port news

Holland America will start calling at Alaska's Icy Strait Point in 2006. The port of call, which is presently called on by Royal Caribbean and Celebrity, will be offered on nine Northbound and nine Southbound Glacier Discovery cruises onboard Statendam

Worldwide was pleased to be closely involved in two very successful Monaco Grand Prix Charters, both of which have repeated for next years races.  Follow this link to view images taken by our staff.

PROGRAM IDEA's

Coming up soon are several sporting events which our clients should be focusing on:

Monaco Grand Prix - this event is held annually in Monte Carlo - call us for ideas, we have already signed two charter contract for 2006.  Due to limited port space it is imperative to move early on any plans you may have for a ship charter.  Group space is very limited also and increases in cost the closer it gets to race time.

Grand Prix Tours - who have the Le Ponant chartered for the 2006 race are already working on their 2006 program and are able to discuss a re-charter or group booking at this stage.  As they sell out the cabins - the opportunity to do something becomes less viable and the cost increases accordingly.   They have a very extensive package which include a cruise, the race, cocktail parties with the drivers et all. They can be reached at (949) 719-3350.

• 2006 date - Sunday May 28

2006 Ryder Cup - This event is being held in Ireland at the prestigious Kildare Golf and Country Club, Straffan, Co. Kildare, between Friday 22nd and Sunday 24th September.  Our client has chartered the Seabourn Pride and will bring the ship into the port of  Dublin with pre & post cruises planned around the event. Call us if you have any clients interested in this very exclusive golf/cruise program. We have now signed a contract for the Seabourn Pride - call us if you have any interest in purchasing a block of staterooms for your group.

Superbowl in Miami 2007

True to form, just as soon as this years Superbowl was over, our telephones started to ring for Superbowl 2007.  Call us for some ideas, we are happy to chat about options and who and what might be available in Miami. 

• We have a client who is chartering a ship for the event and will be breaking the staterooms in various allotments for resale to the corporate market

• We also have another very modern smaller ship which is available for charter - call us for information.

The America's Cup 2007

Worldwide continues to bring this event to your attention.  We are currently working on programs for some of our clients who recognizes the corporate potential the event holds and the up market image it projects - especially for multi-national corporations.

China Fields race team to challenge for the Cup: It was confirmed that China-Team has been accepted as the 11th challenger for the 32nd America’s Cup. There are now three countries participating for the first time – South Africa, Germany and China, and five continents are represented, which is reinforcing the global appeal of the America’s Cup.

The 32nd America’s Cup Match will be seen live on European televison - more exposure for your clients
The 32nd America’s Cup Match will be seen live on seven  Northern European countries following an agreement between the America’s Cup organisers and Viasat Broadcasting, a leading European broadcaster. Viasat Broadcasting has acquired exclusive television rights to the 32nd America’s Cup for Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Hungary. Programming will begin this year with coverage of the Louis Vuitton Acts, and magazine programs.

In 2005, there are three venues hosting double Louis Vuitton Acts – Valencia, Spain, Malmö-Skåne, Sweden and Trapani, Italy. For each venue, Viasat will broadcast up to seven highlight programmes, in addition to daily news feeds. There are a further 15 magazine programmes between now and the start of racing in 2007.

Viasat Broadcasting is a leading European broadcaster, with over 30 channels in 19 countries, with distribution through satellite, cable, terrestrial services, and broadband television.

This television agreement is similar in terms and scope to those previously reached with other leading broadcasters, including TVE in Spain, Canal+ in France, ARD/ZDF in Germany, and La7 in Italy. More television agreements for the 32nd America’s Cup are expected to be announced in the coming weeks.

The America’s Cup will be an Italian affair to close the 2005 racing season
Rome, 26th May, 2005 – The 32nd America’s Cup is coming to Italy. With three Italian teams, two Louis Vuitton Acts, and a leading Italian broadcaster covering all of the action, the 32nd America’s Cup clearly has an Italian flavour, especially in 2005.

On Thursday, the America’s Cup organisers held a press conference in Rome to present the Trapani Louis Vuitton Acts 8 & 9, the closing competition of the 2005 season, which begins on the 29th of September. A double regatta, the Trapani Louis Vuitton Acts feature the 12 competitors of the America’s Cup battling in Match and Fleet Racing events.

This year, with three Italian teams, the excitement about the America’s Cup in Italy is unprecedented.

Italian television coverage of the 32nd America’s Cup is very impressive as well, with the Telecom Italia Media Group acquiring the rights to broadcast the 32nd America's Cup on La7. In total, La7 is scheduled to show about 240-hours of live and recorded action dedicated to the America's Cup. (More free exposure for your clients)

With the stunning Egadi Islands as a backdrop in the distance, the racing in Trapani will conclude the 2005 racing season for the America’s Cup, and following the Trapani Louis Vuitton Act 9, the season champion will be crowned, the title going to the team which has performed best across the events in Valencia, Malmö-Skåne, and Trapani this summer.

The 2005 America’s Cup season opens with the Valencia Louis Vuitton Acts 4 & 5. Racing begins on the 16th of June in the host city of the 32nd America’s Cup.


THE AMERICA’S CUP – THE STAGE FOR CREATING LEGENDS as well as a SITE Crystal Award.

For more information contact:

·         Steve Bloss (954) 452-8800, ext. 26 - email Steve

·         Jim Huff (954) 452-8800, ext. 28 - email Jim

·         Leon Banossian (954) 452-8800, ext. 29 - email Leon

·         Martin Dock +44 (0)1794 514336 - email Martin

·         Jim Castle (954) 452 8800. ext.25 - email Jim

Please be advised that WWTCA twice filters all incoming and outgoing mail as well as  attachments for virus's.  Whilst every care is taken to ensure you receive sterile content from us, due to the open nature of the internet we cannot accept any responsibility should a virus arrive on your system.

Due to anti-spam laws, we are ready to unsubscribe you from our mailing list.

To unsubscribe, simply reply to this email with "REMOVE" in the subject field. Please note, it may take one full cycle to complete your unsubscribe. Note that unsubscribing will prevent you from receiving ALL emails from us including product updates and announcements of new features.

 #################################################
 This message is sent in compliance of
 the new e-mail bill: SECTION 301*
 #################################################

 *Per Section 301, Paragraph (a)(2)(C) of S. 1618.

Back