By Mary Pat Sullivan, Content Director, Travel Weekly Events
Travel Weekly has a long-standing partnership with The Travel Professional Community. Bringing members of this community to CruiseWorld each year is critically important to the success of the event and to the caliber of travel advisor attendees. Both Joanie and Tom Ogg have been supportive of CruiseWorld from its inception and last year they brought their son, Andy Ogg, into the CruiseWorld mix.
This year’s CruiseWorld will take place November 9-11 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The event will include three days of jam-packed general sessions, more than 30 breakout sessions, a selection of 11 ship inspection options, hosted meal functions and significant networking opportunities. A one-day Exhibitor Showcase will be held on Thursday, November 10 with more than 150 suppliers on hand representing every segment of the travel industry.
Today’s travel professionals are often working at home and don’t have the chance to interact in person with their peers and with their supplier partners, so we want to be sure they understand the amazing, dynamic industry of which they are such an important part. We have made it our mission to bring the industry’s leaders to them and let them feel the energy, hear the plans and be reminded that they have, in fact, made a fabulous career choice.
Attendees at this year’s event will be able to earn CLIA credits with two new courses available. They’ll also have the opportunity to complete Special Needs Group certification, Hawaii Specialist certification and gain hands-on workshop training from nearly a dozen suppliers including, Avalon Waterways, CCRA, Fathom, Greater Fort Lauderdale CVB, Carnival Cruise Line, Exclusive Group Travel, Israel Tourism Board, Uniworld Boutique River Cruise Collection and VAX Vacation Access.
Travel advisor peers will lead a series of four tracks of sessions on Friday including: Mastering a Market Segment, Marketing Your Business, The Business of Selling Travel and The Awesome Side of What You Do.
The Travel Professional Community will be represented by several members as session presenters and moderators. You’ll hear from experts like Donna Alkarmi, Lisa Fletcher, Geoff Millar and Craig Satterfield about their roads to success, along with tips on how to bring your business to the next level. And, of course, Joanie and Andy Ogg will be leading sessions as well.
Andy will team up with Marilyn Macallair of Passport Online Inc on Friday for a dynamic session, “Promoting the FUN Factor through Social Media & Websites.” You’ll learn from two of the industry leaders (one from the boomer generation and one from the millennial generation) about how to use websites, emails and social media to excite and engage customers and ultimately build business.
Joanie’s session on Friday, “Do What You LOVE, LOVE What You Do, LOVE Working from Home” will explore the myriad of choices and decisions to be made as you begin and manage your travel business. Understanding the options and opportunities will enable you to drive your business on the road to continuing success and make your dreams of owning your own business a reality.
Nearly 20 cruise, tour and hospitality executives are set to share their insights on the CruiseWorld stage. Travel Weekly Editor-in-Chief Arnie Weissmann will lead one-on-one discussions with Arnold Donald, CEO of Carnival Corp. and Frank Del Rio, President and CEO of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd.
Panel discussions will bring additional industry leaders to the stage including presidents of host agencies, cruise lines, tour operators, river cruise companies and senior sales and marketing executives from throughout the industry.
Exclusive to CruiseWorld this year is the private Viewing Launch Party onboard the Harmony of the Seas. Royal Caribbean is inviting CruiseWorld travel advisor attendees to actually be on board the world’s largest cruise ship when she is officially named. Space is limited to the first 500 RSVPs. Once you register for CruiseWorld you will receive more information about how to RSVP for the Viewing Launch Party.
To find out more about Travel Weekly’s CruiseWorld, the ship inspection roster and the full conference program, visit www.cruiseworldshow.com.