She will report to director of sales, Claire Stirrup, who has headed up Celebrity Cruises’ UK and Ireland trade sales and marketing function since the start of the year.

Following the promotion, McNeish is now responsible for managing and leading the regional sales manager team.

The new role also includes working across the entire Celebrity Cruises sales team to ensure that the right activity is focused across all trade partner channels.

Stirrup said: “I’m thrilled that Nicola is taking on the head of sales role, and continuing to find new ways to enhance how we work with our agent partners.

“Nicola’s appointment follows news last year that we now have six regional sales managers covering all areas of the UK, including Ireland for the first time, on top of our strategic account managers and sales support teams.

“Our trade partners delivered a record 2016 for Celebrity Cruises, and we’re excited about what 2017 will bring.”

Prior to joining Celebrity Cruises, McNeish was national sales manager, cruise, for Thomas Cook for seven years, and also held various other commercial, sales and customer service roles at Thomas Cook.