Issues & Trends – June 2011
ROYAL CARIBBEAN FURTHER SWELLS LOCAL CRUISE CAPACITY
RCI’s Voyager of the Seas will become Australia’s first megaliner next year
THIS month’s announcement by Royal Caribbean International (RCI) that it will position Voyager of the Seas in Australia for five months from November 2012 means that its parent company, Royal Caribbean Cruises (RCC), is now committed to home-porting four ships in local waters.
RCI’s Voyager of the Seas’ move comes just three months after another RCC line, Celebrity Cruises, announced it will bring Celebrity Solstice to Australia for the 2012/13 “wave” season. (travelBulletin, March).
And the news of the Celebrity positioning came hard on the heels of Carnival Cruise Lines opting to base Carnival Spirit in Australia year-round from October next year.
These initiatives by the world’s two largest cruise lines will mean a spectacular increase in locally-based cruise capacity over the next 18 months.
Carnival, the world’s largest cruise company controlling more than 10 lines, has by far the biggest commit-ment to Australia with seven ships permanently based here – a major jump from the two it was operating year-round as recently as 2007.
RCC’s four ships, by contrast, are here for seasonal deployments – over the October-March “wave” season.
Nevertheless the company is entitled to claim its deployments are adding new dimensions to Australian-based cruise offerings.
The three-year-old Celebrity Solstice is the youngest vessel to be based here and she has a 4.5 star Berlitz rating.
Voyager of the Seas will be the largest ship ever based in Australia and is being promoted as “Australia’s first megaliner”.
According to industry calculations, the arrival of Carnival Spirit and Celebrity Solstice in our waters will add about another 100,000 berths to the capacity available for sale in this market.
Now, on top of that, comes the 3840-passenger Voyager of the Seas to operate a five month season of voyages out of Sydney and Perth.
The megaliner (311 metres long and 48 metres wide with 15 decks) is about twice the size of most ships currently based in the region. Lavishly fitted out, she boasts features such as an ice rink, mini golf, rock climbing wall, three swimming pools, inline skating track and six hot tubs.
RCI boasts that even inside cabins have “a view”. They overlook a “street” lined with cafés and shops.
• MEANWHILE, Jennifer Vande-kreeke has moved from Miami, Florida, to Carnival Cruise Line’s new Sydney office where she will oversee the launch of the Australian marketing campaign for both the Carnival brand and Carnival Spirit’s local voyages beginning in October next year.
This is the first time Carnival has permanently deployed a ship outside the US and Vandekreeke told travelBulletin she will be aiming to ensure the Carnival Spirit onboard experience appeals to Australian consumers.
She is undaunted by the challenge of selling the ship in a market where the Carnival brand is relatively unknown and where available berths are rising exponentially.
“We are not here to steal share but to grow the category,” she said.
She sees great similarities between “the authenticity and playfulness” of the Carnival brand and Australians’ outlook on life and she is confident that Carnival Spirit can attract large numbers of “cruise rookies” (first time cruisers) particularly families.
With online and trade activity already under way, Vandekreeke said line advertising and marketing is scheduled to commence in October/November.