Virgin Voyages Brings AI to Travel Advisors Through Canva

Virgin Voyages says it has become the first major cruise line to deploy AI-powered marketing tools at scale through a strategic partnership with visual communication platform Canva.

The company says the collaboration will transform its top-performing travel advisors into an AI-amplified distributed sales force, positioning it at the forefront of AI adoption and digital transformation in travel retailing.

Virgin Voyages says the partnership provides First Mates (travel advisors) with an innovative AI-powered platform designed to automate content creation, accelerate time-to-market and drive measurable booking increases. It says this marks the first phase of its strategic rollout of intelligent tools aimed at revolutionizing the travel advisor experience.

“Travel advisors are the heart of Virgin Voyages’ success story,” said Nirmal Saverimuttu, CEO of Virgin Voyages. “Our First Mates don’t just sell cruises; they’re brand ambassadors who bring our vision to life for Sailors every single day. This partnership with Canva is about investing in their success and giving them the tools they deserve to grow their businesses alongside ours. When our First Mates win, Virgin Voyages wins.”

Launched in November, 100 travel advisors – all of whom qualified for the highly sought-after First Mate Spectacular Soiree voyage – were invited to join a four-week immersive journey to master Canva, earn badges and unleash their creativity while sailing through design challenges. 

Virgin Voyages says those advisors can now create and customize flyers, social media posts, destination content and booking materials featuring Virgin Voyages’ complete brand kit, including fonts, logos, colour palettes, offer lock-ups and signature “With Love From” stamps. 

“We’re creating the cruise industry’s first AI-amplified sales force,” said Billy Bohan Chinique, Head of Global Brand Marketing at Virgin Voyages. “This partnership with Canva is just the beginning of our commitment to equipping advisors with intelligent tools that minimize administrative burdens and maximize their ability to connect Sailors with unforgettable experiences. We’re pioneering what agentic AI looks like in travel retailing.”

Virgin Voyages says the partnership solves a critical inefficiency in the travel industry by reducing off-brand or duplicated materials while improving speed to market and overall brand consistency. 

The immersive training program features weekly sessions showcasing different marketing materials, accompanied by creative challenges that reward participation with prizes including Canva merchandise, Yellow Leaf Hammocks and co-op marketing funds.

“Canva is transformative,” added Bohan Chinique. “The platform’s intuitive design and AI-powered capabilities make it incredibly easy for our top partners to create stunning, on-brand marketing materials in minutes. With our complete library of assets integrated directly into Canva, First Mates can customize everything from social posts to booking flyers with their agency information and LetsGoBook links.”

The Canva partnership represents just the beginning of Virgin Voyages’ commitment to AI-powered innovation for its travel advisor community. Looking ahead, Virgin Voyages plans to leverage Canva’s AI-powered tools to further scale personalized, on-brand content creation while supporting their strategy to equip a distributed sales network to market autonomously and drive growth. 

• In addition to Canva, the Virgin Voyages team is exploring intelligent tools and agentic AI designed to transform how First Mates work, such as:
  
  AI-powered tools designed to minimize administrative burdens and maximize advisor-client interaction time.
• Intelligent automation for routine tasks like availability checks, pricing updates, and booking confirmations.
• Smart recommendations that help First Mates match Sailors to perfect itineraries based on preferences and history.
• Streamlined communications with automated follow-ups and personalized client touchpoints.

Following the success of Phase 1, Virgin Voyages plans to expand the Canva program to 1,000 First Mates in Q1 2026, complete with similar training and support infrastructure.

For more information about Virgin Voyages’ First Mates program, click here.