Travel Agent - April 14, 2008 - (Page 58)

CRUISES CONTINUED FROM PAGE 56 Jamaica in 2007, while that number should dwindle to at or below 3,180 visits for 2008. “Ships are capitalizing on the European market, which is more profitable,” Bellinfante says. Other Caribbean ports, such as Grand Cayman and Cozumel, are also feeling the harmful effects of tapering cruise capacity. Yet fewer ships in the Caribbean—if we submit to the logic of supply and demand—should result in better pricing, as many cruise lines say. Right? Well, not so fast. Many travel agents aren’t seeing any real pickup in pricing—in fact, Joan McCarty, owner of Specialty Travel in St. Petersburg, FL, notes the complete opposite. “Prices for the Caribbean are so low that we are back to post-9/11 pricing for this area,” she says. Sherry Laskin Kennedy, travel manager of AAA in Melbourne, FL, is seeing it shake out similarly in the Caribbean this summer as friendlier prices have led to a paucity of space. “Availability is becoming scarce as the prices are ridiculously lower than usual for summer cruises,” she says. “Celebrity has no ships in the Caribbean this summer and Carnival’s seven-night cruises are going for $50 per night on some sailings. The fall is also looking like a bargain-basement value.” Laskin Kennedy isn’t optimistic that pricing in the region will pick up any time soon, either. “We will see panic pricing and added discounts until the new ships begin to arrive, creating excitement and demand—and, in turn, a price point worthy of a new build,” she says, adding that she doesn’t recall ever seeing as many ships open to book nearly two years in advance. Still, while the value message of a cruise has not reached all noncruisers, it’s loud and clear with repeaters. “I’m seeing repeaters booking and rebooking onboard because they know the value of a cruise and are taking advantage of the best pricing in several years,” Laskin Kennedy says. Don’t for a moment think cruise executives like this pricing curve. Though they all tout the value of a cruise, they’d still like to push pricing up. Gerry Cahill, Carnival Cruise Lines’ newly crowned president and CEO, said as much at this past month’s CLIA cruise3sixty conference in Fort Lauderdale. “We would like to see pricing go up,” he said, explaining it’s a necessity to meet the cost of building more ships. He pointed to $250,000 per-berth prices as evidence and the rise in the euro against the dollar. (Most cruise ships are built in Europe.) “We need growth in pricing to keep up.” Carnival, however, is one line that hasn’t drunk all of the European Kool-Aid. The vast majority of its fleet is remaining in the Caribbean. “We are staying,” Cahill said, “while others are moving.” Carol Marlow, president of Cunard, is in Cahill’s corner when it comes to boosting pricing and not only because they work for the same parent company. She recently voiced her aversion to discounting, saying that within an environment where demand outpaces supply, discounting shouldn’t exist. Is Europe Replacing the Caribbean? Other travel agents are less convinced one way or the other about the pricing situation in the Caribbean. “Cruise lines that are having trouble filling their ships are offering some Caribbean discounts, but not many,” says Sylvia Berman, president of Post Haste Travel in Hollywood, FL. “The best discounts are coming from cruise lines that had excellent deposits, but the passengers are canceling before penalties set in.” Scott Davis, national director of cruises for Altour-Classic Cruise & Travel in Woodland Hills, CA, isn’t inclined to think there is a pricing storm in the Caribbean. “[There’s] nothing dramatic either way in the Caribbean,” he says, though he notes that capacity in the region has constricted. Where it has inflated is in Europe. American-based cruise lines have zeroed in on European waters with unprecedented gusto, redeploying ships there that might regularly serve the Caribbean. With a glut of new hardware in the water, discounts and customerfriendly prices should be rampant, no? Well, yes, to a degree. “At the beginning of the year,” says Laskin Kennedy, “pricing among the premium lines was still on the high side.” Celebrity Constellation, for example, she says, was averaging well above $125 per night for a European cruise—and Holland America Line wasn’t really discounting either. “Then about two weeks ago,” Laskin Kennedy goes on, “there began not only a price drop for the cruise, but deeply discounted or essentially free air to Europe, including the Baltics. Nearly hourly, I was receiving another discount for a European cruise.” These discounts also include luxury lines such as Seabourn (www. seabourn.com), which has been touting free airfare to Europe, and Cunard Line’s (www.cunard.com) Queen Mary 2, whose six-night transatlantic crossings this summer can be had for under $1,000. According to Specialty Travel’s McCarty, 2009 might even be a better pricing year for Europe than 2008, with the expectation of even more ships in the region. “Europe for this year is pretty much holding with a few last-minute deals,” she says. “However, Europe for 2009 is being priced less expensively than for the identical trip and date for 2008.” I Although still a major player, Carnival’s presence in the Caribbean is declining CONNECTING YOU Just around the same time last year, the industry lamented the Caribbean and sang the praises of Europe. Check out www.travelagentcentral.com/europe 58 | TravelAgent April 14, 2008 http://www.seabourn.com http://www.seabourn.com http://www.cunard.com http://www.travelagentcentral.com/europe

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Travel Agent - April 14, 2008

Travel Agent - April 14, 2008 Online Now Contents Contributors From the Editor From the Publisher Europe: The châteaux-hotels of the Dordogne and Quercy in France Middle East: Although Dubai is Expanding, it is not Bursting at the Seams Pacific/Asia: Pattaya is Southeast Asia’s Sunny Paradise Pacific/Asia Briefs Las Vegas: New York City Dining Comes to Sin City Hawaii: Accommodations in Hawaii for the Entire Family Central & South America: Cayo Espanto is the Private Island Resort for Clients to Get Away from it All Caribbean: Iberostar Property Opens in Rose Hall, Jamaica Running El Casino at the Sheraton Old San Juan Africa: Africa Travel Association’s 11th Annual Symposium Spotlight on the Djibouti Palace Kempinski Cruises: Experts Share Views on the Direction Cruise Pricing is Heading Cover Story: Home Counsel Car Rental: Vacation.com Joins with Hertz to Grow Car-Rental Sales Transportation Briefs Northeast USA: Brooklyn’s Hotel Le Bleu Agent Profile: Gary Mansour of Mansour Travel Agenda: Fam Trips, Deals & Incentives, Calendar Violent Protests Halt Travel to Tibet Celebrating Company and Agency Innovations Sheraton Upgrades Brand through Renovations and Redesign Earning Opportunities and Agent Recognition In the Spotlight Editorial Index Advertising Index Classified Marketplace Trendwatch

Travel Agent - April 14, 2008

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