New Carnival Cruise Line President

With CLIA CEO Christine Duffy at Cruise3sixty

Familiar Face
To Head
Carnival Cruise Line

Right before our National Conference in November, Gerry Cahill announced his retirement as Carnival Cruise Line's President. 

Carnival Corporation & plc., the world’s largest travel and leisure company, today announced that Christine Duffy has been named president of Carnival Cruise Line, with 24 ships, making it the largest of Carnival Corporation’s nine distinct cruise brands. According to the press release, Duffy will assume the role on February 1, 2015 and report to Arnold Donald, the CEO of Carnival Corporation & plc.

I've been fortunate to get to know Christine Duffy through my association with Cruise Lines International Association, Inc (CLIA). I'm pictured with her (above) at the most recent Cruise3Sixty conference which was held earlier this year in Fort Lauderdale, FL.   That event marked the 10th anniversary of the conference, which is attended by agents and member cruise lines from around the globe.

I'm very happy with the selection of Christine Duffy to head up one of the most well-known lines in the industry.  After-all, she has some outstanding qualifications:   she has the same first name as I do, she's my height,  she too has been cruising for 30 years, has a real love for the industry, has the consumer's and agent's interest in mind, and has many more industry qualifications that you can read about in the actual press release.   Here are some quotes from the press release:
 

“Christine is one of the most respected and dynamic leaders in the travel industry,” said Donald. “She brings a wealth of experience to Carnival Cruise Line that will help the cruise line continue to deliver unmatched vacation experiences to millions of guests each year.”

“This is a tremendous opportunity for me to be part of a dynamic organization with a long history of innovation and industry firsts,” said Duffy. “The name Carnival is truly synonymous with cruising and I look forward to joining this talented team to continue the tradition of excellence that has made Carnival Cruise line one of the top cruise lines in the world.”

With Gerry Cahill at the helm, Carnival Cruise Line had some rough seas of late.   We hope that as Christine Duffy assumes the role, the seas are calm.   We are looking forward to working together to help dreams come true on one of the Fun Ships of Carnival.  Congratulations !!

Norwegian Oceania and Regent to Wed

Norwegian Announces Marriage With

Prestige Cruises

Norwegian Cruise Line published a press release on Tuesday announcing that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Prestige Cruises International, Inc, parent company of Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises, in cash and stock for a total transaction consideration of $3.025 billion, including the assumption of debt.

"The combination of three distinct brands, each serving a different market segment, under one umbrella immediately creates an industry-leading cruise operator with an unmatched growth trajectory and a portfolio of products that allows us to appeal to guests at every stage of their life cycle. We are fully committed to retaining the brand propositions, guest experiences and cultures of the Norwegian, Oceania and Regent brands that have allowed each to realize such success."  ~Kevin Sheehan, Norwegian Cruise Line's CEO

Following the announcement, they also had several meetings with investors, media, and their travel partners to discuss the transaction in further detail.  What does this mean to you as a cruise enthusiast?

The Courtship

It is important to note that both company's senior management forged relationships during the courtship, prior to this transaction being entered, and sought to understand the philosophies that drove each individual company.  As stated by Norwegian's CEO, Kevin Sheehan, these distinct brands serve different market segments and have loyal followings.   It is critical that the brand cultures don't change and that guest experiences are preserved.

The Wedding

The actual consummation of the deal will not occur until some time later this year, most likely in Q4 2014.  Until then, customers and travel partners should expect "business as usual".   If you are really interested, all the legal-ESE can be found in the actual press release.

In the industry briefing, it was clear that both companies had taken this merger seriously and done their due diligence.  This was "day one" and too early to answer many questions that were lurking in people's minds, but assurances were given that in due time there would be answers.  

The Honeymoon

After the deal becomes official, there may be some changes as one might expect.  Indications were that both companies have some best practices and that the intention was to learn from each other.   Prestige for example has already merged two companies, Regent and Oceania, so some of those past experiences will come in handy with this new entity. Customers and travel partners should benefit in the long run from the merger.

There is a definite life-cycle that cruise guests follow.   Using these three brands as an example customers going on their first cruises would typically start out on Norwegian.   As they mature and have families, Norwegian would still most likely be a fit.  As the kids get older, couples may want to cruise on their own and have a more upscale experience.  Oceania could be the cruise line of choice for those guests.   Later in life, Regent, with their all-inclusive experience, might become the preferred cruise line.   There should not be a need to go outside this new family of cruise lines to meet goals of any specific cruise vacation.  (There could be exceptions to that, such as river cruising).

There were questions about the loyalty programs as you might expect.  It is too early to determine what changes, if any would be made.  As travel partners and guests, the hope is that loyalty will be rewarded, while still preserving the individual benefits for the given brand within the family of brands.

Married Life

This deal has a life-cycle as well, and all we can do is wait and see.  We've been invited to the wedding feast and anxiously await the day of the event.   We all wish the partners well in their new journey together.  After all, it is in everyone's interest that this new "marriage" live long and be prosperous.   We expect more announcements in the months ahead and we will bring you updates as appropriate.

Congratulations to the entire Norwegian and Prestige Cruises family - we wish you well.

Parbuckling of Costa Concordia Approved

The Parbuckling Project: Concordia wreck removal project informative website

UPDATE 16 Sep 2013:

Parbuckling of Costa Concordia Begins 

Press release by Italian Civil Protection

According to the press release (6 Sep 2013), "The operation to right the ship Costa Concordia (known as “parbuckling”) has been given the go-ahead for this month: this was the outcome of a meeting convened in Rome today at the headquarters of the Civil Protection Department, by the Emergency Commissioner Franco Gabrielli, and attended by representatives from the Advisory Committee, the Observatory, the Micoperi-Titan Consortium and the cruise line Costa Crociere."   

Full Text of Press Release

Before the actual work takes place, authorities will need to review test certificates, inspect the structures, and complete preliminary activities.  No date for the actual parbuckling was given in the press release.

The overall project is 77% completed and is being carried out by a crew of 474 workers and 28 vessels and crafts on site. For a video and additional details of the salvage operation, see Costa Concordia Salvage Begins.

Main article: Costa Concordia Listing after Deadly Accident