Make the Most of YOUR CruiseWorld Experience!
Written By: Mary Pat Sullivan, Executive Vice President of Marketing and Partnerships – Northstar Travel Group
Travel Weekly’s CruiseWorld continues its commitment to advisor education. This year’s event is taking place November 1-3 at the Greater Fort Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Programming will include a multitude of learning options for attendees including: five general sessions, 12 peer-led workshops, 15 supplier training sessions, and a think tank for peer thought sharing and engagement.
Speakers on the general session stage will include CEOs, presidents, and sales and marketing executives from airlines, cruise lines, hotels and resorts, destinations, professional services and tour operators. Notably, Carnival Corporation & plc is set to sponsor a pivotal general session, providing exclusive insights from this industry leader. Additionally, the event will feature breakfast and lunch presentations from leading brands including Carnival Cruise Line, Celebrity Cruises, MSC Cruises, Norwegian Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean, Sandals, and Silversea Cruises. Attending advisors will hear straight from the leadership about innovations, changes, new products, and new opportunities in the coming year, plus how they can use that information to create better experiences for their clients and earn higher profits for themselves and their agencies.
Equally as important will be the travel agency leadership and the individual advisors who will join the supplier leadership on the general session stage as thought leadership speakers and moderators, helping to bring the advisor voice to these critical conversations.
Back again are CruiseWorld’s Spotlights, where the audience hears from suppliers in different segments of our industry about their brands and the importance of the travel advisor in their future. This year’s spotlights will feature Alaska – Visit Anchorage, Israel Ministry of Tourism, and Scenic Luxury Cruises.
Returning are the ever-popular Pitch Perfect sessions. During these sessions advisors host panel discussions with suppliers in a specific category. These sessions help the audience better understand the brands in each category and how to match them to their clients. This year’s categories include luxury, river/small-ship cruises, groups, and adventure/expedition.
TW Talks are set to inspire advisors through short, thought-provoking messages from travel agency leadership including, Cruise Planners, Dream Vacations, Nexion Travel Group and Travel Planners International.
Peer-to-peer workshops, sponsored by Holland America Line, are led by some of the most esteemed advisors in the industry. Taking place on Friday, November 3rd, advisors will dive into topics such as charters, AI, succession planning, branding, group sales, and more.
The advisor attendees will also have a chance to brainstorm together in an interactive Think Tank. Attendees will be able to share ideas about what has worked for them and ask for assistance from their peers for challenges they are facing.
Supplier sponsored workshops will also be offered on Wednesday and Thursday, November 1 and 2. Attendees will hear from Alaska – Visit Anchorage, Carnival Corporation, Carnival Cruise Line, Celebrity Cruises, Greater Miami CVB, Japan National Tourism Organization, Majestic Resorts, Passport Online, Playa Hotels & Resorts, Princess, Royal Caribbean, VAX VacationAccess, Virgin Voyages, and Windstar Cruises.
“A key component of CruiseWorld is the plethora of knowledge that can be gained from both supplier partners and fellow advisors in the span of three days,” says Alicia Evanko-Lewis, Executive Vice President of Global Events for Northstar Travel Group. “Each year attendees walk away knowing more than they did before, being the most up-to-date on all things travel. This year will be no different.”
Ship tours are another valuable educational component of CruiseWorld. Ship tours will take place on Tuesday, October 31; Saturday, November 4; and Sunday, November 5. A full roster can be viewed here. As ship tours are filling up quickly, advisors are encouraged to register soon if they would like to participate.
Travel Institute graduates with a Certified Travel Associate (CTA), a Certified Travel Consultant (CTC) or a Certified Travel Industry Executive (CTIE) who attend CruiseWorld will earn 10 Continuing Education Units (CEU’s).