Expectation of an increase in demand for holidays on the ocean and on rivers in the coming 12 months has led to travel technology specialist Traveltek Group calling 2018 the ‘year of the cruise’.
According to statistics from Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), eight out of 10 agents forecast a significant increase in year-on-year ocean and river cruise sales this year.
This growing demand is driven by a hike in the number of millennials booking river cruises and more ‘skip-gen’ cruising (grandparents travelling with their grandchildren) – two trends revealed by CLIA. Others include an uptick in demand for cruises to chilly climes and wellness- and fitness-focused itineraries.
‘Skip-gen’ cruising (grandparents travelling with their grandchildren) is on the increase. (Image credit: jrtb/iStock-GettyImages)
To meet this expected global cruise boom Traveltek is making further enhancements to its cruise technology, working closely with the trade in its key markets – Asia, Australia, the Middle East, the UK and North America – to tailor its offering according to their individual requirements.
This include refining its next-generation cruise booking platform CruiseNX launched last year, which introduced several new-to-market User Experience (UX) enhancements.
The company will also address the specific industry needs of each region where the company is now based following its recent global expansion drive.
“With CLIA projecting 27.2 million cruise passengers this year, sourced from established markets such as the US and UK, but increasingly new ones including Asia and the Middle East Traveltek is calling 2018 the ‘year of the cruise’ and making product and business development in this sector a key priority,” said Peter Whittle, global sales director, Traveltek Group Ltd.
Peter Whittle: Traveltek making product and business development a key priority,. (Image credit: Traveltek)
He added that Traveltek is collaborating with its key agency and cruise line partners to make further enhancements to its offering, while factoring in the nuances of each market the company operates in.
CLIA figures further revealed North America and Europe as the largest cruise source markets accounting for 50% and 27% of all passengers respectively,
However, the ‘Rest of the World’ that contributes the remaining 23% shows the strongest growth potential given it accounts for nearly 85% of the world’s population. At the same time its market share leapt 332% in a decade, from 8.5% in 2006 to 23% in 2016. This region includes Asia and the Middle East where Traveltek established offices last year namely in Hong Kong, Singapore and Dubai.
“These are markets where demand is surging above the global average and where Traveltek has introduced new technology to help the trade sell cruise more effectively,” explained Whittle.
CruiseNX offers travel and cruise specialists a wide range of enhanced capabilities, from a streamlined booking process to the ability to book multiple cabins in one search journey and fast filtering that helps agents find the ideal cruise based on customer preferences and profiles.
Traveltek also offers content of 190-plus cruise lines, multi-currency, multi-language capabilities and dynamic packaging tools.
• Featured image credit: nevskyphoto/iStock-GettyImage
