It was a huge week for cruising as stakeholders from across Australia and the globe descended upon Sydney for the annual Cruise360 Conference.
It is no secret that Australians love to cruise, but over the last couple of years the country as a whole has endured a concerning drop-off in ship deployments.
One of the main reasons for this is the cost of doing business for cruise lines in local waters, as well as a tough regulatory environment.
In a segment where margins matter, it has been clear that some cruise lines feel they can get more bang for their buck by shifting hardware to places like the Mediterranean and the Caribbean.
Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) and the Australian Cruise Association have been vocal in promoting the economic benefits provided by cruising to government in a bid to reverse the trend.
Opening the conference, CLIA Australasia executive director Joel Katz said it was time to “restore Australia’s competitiveness as a cruise destination”.
“We need stable, practical and competitive policy settings so that Australia can continue to attract cruise ships and deliver billions of dollars’ worth of benefits to communities around the country,” Katz said.
C360 also set the stage to hear from high-profile cruise executives from around the world, as well as a forum to deliver some of the major highlights from throughout the year.
One of those was CLIA reaching a record volume of membership, now standing at more than 7,000 across Australia and New Zealand.
The weight of members in our region contributes greater heft to CLIA’s voice on important advocacy issues, said CLIA chairman Peter Little.
Other areas that underscore the success of cruising locally included very high training completion rates, the highest number of nominations at the CLIA Awards, as well as the growing popularity of the CLIA Masters Program.
Look out for a special edition of Cruise Weekly on Monday afternoon reporting on all of the big-ticket insights from C360.
VisitBritain was also in town this week, with CEO Patricia Yates meeting with key stakeholders to talk up the message of British visitation.
The impacts of the Middle East have been felt by plenty of long-haul markets, and the UK is certainly one of those.
Insulated by the fact it is such an established market propped up by up strong VFR travel, it has nonetheless seen its visitation and spend targets for 2026 fall short of the mark, according to Yates.
Speaking with TD at an event in Sydney, she conceded the numbers were not as expected, but was confident of a strong return to form as Aussies – who typically book earlier than other markets – look to seize their opportunity following a period of volatility earlier this year.
Yates added that she hoped Qantas’ Project Sunrise would “create a real buzz about Britain” when it launches late next year, and bring the Australian market closer and more accessible.
More recently, there has been a stronger push from Britain to see more of the country’s north – especially the tandem and somewhat competitive cities of Manchester and Liverpool.
With new UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham nicknamed ‘the king of the north’, we should logically expect more love from the upper regions in the months and possibly years ahead.
This week was also flush with major appointments, led by the promotion of Flight Centre Travel Group’s Rachel Kingswell, who will shift to the newly created position of global head of product, luxury brands.
Kingswell previously headed up FCTG’s Travel Associates brand, with a recruitment search now underway to find a replacement – big shoes to fill indeed.
FCTG has made no secret of its mission to rapidly expand its luxury travel business, revealing its intention this week to double its value in only six years, with Kingswell set to shape the group’s product strategy across its luxury portfolio, including its strong performing Travel Associates and Luxury Travel Collection brands.
Speaking of rapidly growing businesses, marketing heavy hitter Jo Boundy joined Journey Beyond as managing director, resorts and lodges.
The former CMO for Qantas and more recently The Commonwealth Bank will be charged with expanding and strengthening Journey Beyond’s property division, which includes an array of iconic marquee assets, such as Ayers Rock Resort, Monarto Safari Resort and Sal Salis, to name just a few.
The latest recruitment follows the appointment of one-time Carnival Australia chief Jennifer Vandekreeke as its MD, experiences & attractions in August, following on from a major restructure plan revealed exclusively by Travel Daily back in May.
That development saw Voyages Tourism Australia CEO Matt Cameron-Smith transition to CCO for Journey Beyond and David Donald promoted to managing director – rail & touring, and in July, Journey Beyond also appointed Roland Ah Chee as its debut GM, first nations engagement and partnerships.
With senior executives now locked in for all of the company’s major portfolios, the big question is ‘where to from here’? Well, the whispers are there may be some more big announcements in the pipeline, so stay tuned to Travel Daily to be first with the news.
In further people news, long-time senior Webjet Group executive David Galt has accepted the newly created role of chief commercial officer at Consolidated Travel.
The announcement puts an end to speculation about where Galt would go after exiting Webjet after a close-to 20-year tenure at the OTA.
Commencing early next month, Consolidated Travel managing director Dennis Alysandratos said Galt’s experience in delivering profitable growth would be a major asset to his business, predicting he will build trusted and positive relationships with airline partners, customers and industry stakeholders.
Other notable mentions include Swan Hellenic opening its first office in the Southern Hemisphere in Sydney’s Rose Bay, with the cruise line reporting triple-digit growth in the ANZ market.
Our sister publication also reported Swan Hellenic is preparing to launch its own loyalty program, with the scheme to begin rolling out
in 2027.
Cruise Weekly also spoke to Norwegian Cruise Line Managing Director, APAC, Ben Angell, about how the brand is tracking following a raft of high-profile redundancies.
Angell assured the market that NCL remains “absolutely committed” to the Australian market, calling out its strong team and strong sense of continuity in the region.
Have a great weekend, folks.
