Continue your Education and Establish your Connections at CruiseWorld
Written By: Mary Pat Sullivan, Senior Vice President of Marketing – Northstar Travel Groups
Travel Weekly’s CruiseWorld is the premier industry event when it comes to education. This year’s event is taking place November 2-4 at the Broward County Convention Center in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Its programming will include four general sessions, peer-led workshops, supplier training sessions, and a think tank discussion opportunity.
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. Equally as important will be the travel agency leadership and the individual advisors who will take the stage this year.
Back again after their debut in 2021 are CruiseWorld’s Category Spotlights, where the audience hears from a supplier in each travel industry segment on the future outlook for that segment. This year’s spotlights will feature Alaska – Visit Anchorage, American Airlines, Atlas Ocean Voyages, Karisma Hotels & Resorts, Saudi Arabia, Uplift and Xeniapp.
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, rive cruise, luxury, groups, and multigenerational travel.
TW Talks are set to inspire advisors through short, thoughtful messages from travel agency leadership including, Cruise Planners, Dream Vacations, Levarté Travel, Nexion Travel Group and Travel Planners International.
Peer-to-peer workshops, led by some of the most esteemed advisors in the industry will be available on Friday, November 4. Topics will include marketing, sales, social media, product development, staff development, supplier relationship building and more.
The advisor attendees will also have a chance to brainstorm together in an interactive Think Tank, sponsored by Scenic. 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 2 and 3. Attendees will hear from Alaska – Visit Anchorage, Carnival Corporation, Carnival Cruise Line, Celebrity Cruises, Disney Cruise Line, Israel Ministry of Tourism, Japan National Tourism Organization, Princess Cruises, Royal Caribbean, VAX Vacation Access, Virgin Voyages, Visit Lauderdale 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. The event is excited to be bringing this component back to the programming after a two-year hiatus. Ship tours will take place on Tuesday, November 1; Saturday, November 5; and Sunday, November 6. A full roster can be viewed here.
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).
To view the full program of sessions and events and to register, click here. Use code HBTA at checkout