Agents could be poised to take advantage of a huge capacity bubble in the Mediterranean, warned Carnival Corp cruise chiefs at a TTG roundtable last week.
Speaking ahead of its annual UK Cruise Awards, hosted by P&O, Princess Cruises, Cunard, Holland America Line, Carnival Cruise Lines and Seabourn, they said the US market for the Med had cooled because of security concerns.
Alex White, vice-president of sales, P&O Cruises and Cunard said: “There’s a nervousness around the region from America, which puts pressure on the UK to deliver on fly-Med. From the UK perspective, no-go areas are very localised, but Americans are bypassing the whole region.”
“There’ll be an opportunity for UK agents to over-inject into the Med, and sell more than ever before,” added Rachel Poultney, head of sales, Princess Cruises.
Keen to avoid a bloodbath, the cruise lines said they would be well prepared: “We’ll remain positive and consistent so that carries through to the consumer,” said Wendy Lahmich, director of sales, Holland America Line and Seabourn.
Consistent pricing was the story of the January peaks, they said, an approach which had delivered a “successful and encouraging” start to the year for Carnival Cruise Lines, according to Iain Baillie, managing director UK sales, who said the line had already achieved 30% of its 2016 target.
“It’s been really positive,” agreed Lynn Narraway, UK managing director, Holland America Line and Seabourn. “We’ve held our nerve a bit more,” said White. “We didn’t double onboard credit this year, because we didn’t feel the need.” Customers who might be waiting for a second wave of special offers were therefore going to be disappointed, he suggested.
Narraway added that pricing had risen for Seabourn, because a temporary decrease in capacity had increased demand. “You have to book Alaska for 2017 now,” she said.
