River Cruise Niche Expands As Lines Diversify Offerings
by Andrew Sheivachman /FORT LAUDERDALE-- As river cruising options expand—and new ships head to new river destinations around the globe—travel agents looking to hone in on the niche need to stay educated and involved with the cruise lines they want to sell.
“With river cruising experiencing an amazing new build boom, CLIA member cruise lines will account for 16 brand new river cruise ships in 2015 alone, with another 14 scheduled for 2016,” said Charles Sylvia, vice president of trade relations for CLIA, at a Cruise3sixty panel on river cruise tips for agents.
“Not only is there remarkable growth in the number of ships being built, but there's remarkable change in where these ships are sailing,” said Sylvia.
Diversity of product
As river cruise demand has exploded, the cruise lines have shifted itineraries to take advantage of new destinations and opportunities.
Destinations, and not the ships themselves, were always the true attraction of river cruises and a wide variety of destinations are now on tap.
“River cruising is now carrying guests to countries like Egypt, Russia, India, China, Myanmar, Vietnam, and Cambodia not to mention U.S. river regions,” said Sylvia.
River cruising potential will only be tapped with the help of North American cruise selling agents, said the cruise executives.
“River cruising is small and inclusive; we know it's on the bucket list of many travelers,” said Kristin Karst, executive vice president and co-owner of AmaWaterways. “The North American market is our strongest market, our home market.”
The combination of high-touch amenities with a diverse destination experience is drawing cruisers away from mainstream cruising.
“There’s a great demand out there for small ship cruises,” said Susan Schultz, director of sales for American Cruise Lines. “The amenities that the river cruise sector offers is really creating a nice demand for river cruising whether in Europe or North America.
Potential for agents
Besides the diversity of destinations, river cruise lines are working to differentiate their onboard products.
“There is so much more potential when it comes to the international market,” said Karst. “We also know we are all very different and cater to different clients. We customize our itineraries this way.”
While each line is looking for a competitive advantage, the result is more nuanced brand differentiation aimed at appealing to different types of clients.
“Your clients are demanding more amenities and personalization,” said Schultz. “That's something that all lines are trying to do for you, so education is important for the travel agent to know who we are and what we're all about.”
Long booking windows—and more expensive rates—are good for agent commissions.
“There are 23 million ocean cruisers this coming year, and maybe 600,000 to Europe in river cruising,” said Patrick Clark, managing director of Avalon Waterways. “There is a tremendous opportunity for growth.
“Europe remains the core for river cruise, but there is also the emerging markets.”
It’s important for agents to look beyond their normal baby boomer clientele, because of the high awareness of river cruising from other groups.
“While the customers have been largely from the baby boomer generation, we’re seeing new customers come in,” said Clark. “Families and younger travelers responding to a variety of different river cruising options.”
Looking for luxury
Luxury river cruise lines are experiencing a boom in demand so strong that cruisers are usually booking more than a year and a half out.
“For us demand, is significantly outstripping supply,” said Chris Greco, brand manager of Tauck River and Small Ship Cruising. “We have more than doubled our fleet over the last two years.
“I attribute it to interested ocean cruisers, but it's traditional Tauck patrons who are moving over too,” he said. “There is a very productive pipeline of people who are interested in river cruising.”
The desires of experienced cruisers, and luxury travelers looking for their first cruise experience, can be fertile ground for agents.
“As we’ve all seen, the luxury market is growing,” said Nancy Logan, vice president of sales and national accounts at Uniworld.
“We see the opportunity to cater to those customers who want a luxury cruise experience,” she said. “A lot of people who sail on luxury ocean lines want to move over to the river with a similar level of service to what they're used to.”