Destination will be the "dominant influence" for customers in 2023

Destination will be the "dominant influence" for customers in 2023

Celebrity Eclipse at the Hubbard Glacia photo credit Spacejunkie2 (Flickr)

A poll of 1,000 people carried out by cruise.co.uk found almost half (44%) of respondents describe destination as the "main factor" in their holiday decision-making process.

 

A quarter of respondents said the price tag was most influential, while a fifth indicated it was the cruise brand which swayed their choice. The specific ship and departure date were the lowest-ranking, with 5% of responses each.

 

The survey also revealed more than 50% of respondents had travelled on three or more cruise lines, and less than 20% stayed loyal to one brand, choosing instead to holiday based on destination and cost.

Tony Andrews, deputy managing director of cruise.co.uk, said: "Cruising is such a great way to see the world, so it’s easy to see why destination came up trumps in our survey.

 

"The ability to reach all corners of the globe from the comfort of a ship, combined with the value for money a holiday at sea offers, means we’re seeing customers coming back time and time again to discover new destinations or revisit firm favourites."

Carnival Corporation Cruise Brands Ramp Up Ad Spending

Carnival Corporation Cruise Brands Ramp Up Ad Spending

Carnival Corporation is ramping up advertising spending across its portfolio of brands, according to President and CEO Josh Weinstein, speaking on the company’s year-end and fourth-quarter earnings call.

He said it was a move to support future demand.

“I’ve actively been working with each brand on their strategies and road maps,” Weinstein said. “As a result, I’ve authorized our brands to take a significant step up in advertising activities, including a nearly 20 per cent increase in our investment this past quarter over 2019, to elevate awareness and consideration and to drive demand for both the near and the longer term. This should be particularly impactful with those new-to-cruise, where we draw about one-third of our guests, as we position to take share from land-based alternatives.”

For example, Weinstein said that Princess Cruises would source more heavily in North America than in prior years due to source market disruptions elsewhere.

And the results have been good, Weinstein noted, with record Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales results at a number of brands.

“We think that advertising has a good amount to do with that, to really reach first-timers, generate awareness, generate consideration, and do so in a meaningful way. We’ve got great brands, and we’ve got tremendous brands, but we need to do a better job getting the voice out. And this is a good way to do it. And it helps not just us, it helps our trade partners, it helps the bookings across the board.”