WHO’S WHO IN CRUISING?

LAND-BASED OPERATIONS
LAND-BASED OPERATIONS

To summarize a cruise line’s land-based operations is no easy task. Some cruise lines
are relatively small, with fewer than 100 off-ship employees. Others are huge, with
thousands of employees. What do they have in common?
To serve certain passenger needs, cruise lines contract with independent concessioners,
contractors or vendors. This is often true shore excursion tour operators, onboard
entertainer groups, onboard lecturers and port operations staff. Casino and beauty salon
workers, photographers, shops sales people and spa staff may also be independent
contractors.
• Surprisingly, the layers of management are often similar. They parallel the standard
structure employed in other corporations (in the figure, from Carnival Cruise Lines)
• At the top you may have the President and CEO, a handful of Vice Presidents, some
managers and so on.
• Only the very largest cruise lines would have a lot of other officers while on smaller
cruise lines, some positions might meld the functions of several vice presidents into one.
TRAVEL AGENCIES

Why are travel agents so important to the cruise sales process? The reason is simple:
Purchasing a cruise is a far more complicated matter than, say, buying an airline ticket.
A cruise isn’t a commodity it’s an experience. All cruises aren’t alike. To decide which
cruise is the right one for a particular person is a complicated task, one that requires the
analysis, advice, and experience of a professional travel agent.
People who purchase a cruise want to make sure that they’ll fully enjoy the experience
of a cruise. They want one that will provide destinations, food, activities, entertainment and
environment that matches their style.
KINDS OF TRAVEL AGENCIES

• Independent agencies. These agencies are privately owned and unaffiliated with any larger
institution. Often called mom & pops, they’re the “corner stone” of travel retailers, usually
with small staffs and a keen sense of the communities they serve.
• Agency chains. As with most other retail industries, large groups of agencies have developed,
branded themselves thus, having chains or branches.
• Consortium-affiliated agencies. Some independent agencies affiliate themselves with a
consortium organization. In turn, the consortium forges preferred-supplier relationships on
behalf of its member agencies and provides them with marketing aid, training support, financial
advice, among others.
 Not all travel agencies are full-service. Some only sell tours, some concentrate almost
exclusively on business travels, some only sell various travel tickets and only a handful sell
cruises.
In the United States, there are agencies that sell cruises that are somewhat called
“preferred” vendors. They usually offer preferred deals to their clients. Cruise lines
routinely identify those agencies that sell or whom they wish to sell a large volume of their
products. These agencies, through a negotiated process, become preferred sellers of the
cruise line products.
WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES OF BEING A
“PREFERRED” AGENCY?

• The agency may be capable of offering its clients a better cruise deal than their
competitors.
• The agency may be able to offer the client certain value-added benefits, such as upgrades,
etc.
• The cruise line may allow promotional items and co-op funds (x-deals) to help the agency
promote its offers.
• The cruise line may allow access to inventory that other agencies cannot readily get.
(which means access to stateroom availability)
…”PREFERRED”

• Since agents have to master only a few products, they can better explain those products to
their customers.
• If a problem occurs, it’s easier to resolve the issue with someone you know, in this case
the “preferred” agents/agencies.
• The agency typically gets a higher commission for their sales performance.