WASHINGTON, DC — Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) is calling October National Plan a Cruise Month.
Through the multi-dimensional campaign, the cruise industry has come together to feature cruise vacation offers – from chances to win cruise vacations each day of the month and discovering new cruises and destinations to receiving the best cruise deals and promotions.
To help travel agencies and agents leverage National Plan a Cruise Month, CLIA is providing travel agents with tips, tools and techniques to encourage prospects and clients to plan a cruise, whether they are new-to cruise or returning to a vacation at sea.
CLIA has launched a toolkit that is complete with assets to help travel agencies and agents promote the campaign and reach out to new and existing clients. The kit is available to CLIA member travel professionals at cruising.org and includes:
- Press Release – A customizable press release that agencies can send to local media
- Social Posts – Customizable posts to use on social media sites (Facebook and Twitter)
- E-mail – Customizable e-mail template to send to prospects
- Cruise Deals and Promotions – Details about special deals and promotions from CLIA Cruise Line members
- Logos, Visuals – All the necessary graphics to promote the campaign.
In addition to the toolkit, travel agents can participate in the National Plan a Cruise Month webinar taking place on Friday, Aug. 28 at 11 a.m. EDT, hosted by CLIA and moderated by Charles Sylvia, CLIA vice president of membership and Lorri Christou, senior vice president of strategic marketing and communications. Travel agents can log on to cruising.org for more information.
Also, on Wednesday, Sept. 30, from noon to 2 p.m. EDT, using the hashtag #CruiseMonth, travel agents can participate in the Travel Agent National Plan A Cruise Month Twitter Event to tweet along with CLIA for a chance to win prizes like exclusive cruise line experiences, professional development opportunities from CLIA and luggage.
“CLIA and the cruise industry never loses sight of the fact that our success is directly tied to the travel agent community,” said Cindy D’Aoust, Acting CEO, CLIA. “National Plan a Cruise Month is an exciting way to introduce travellers to the cruise vacation experience and we looking forward to working with our travel professional partners on this exciting campaign.”
During National Plan a Cruise Month, several cruise lines have announced offers to entice vacation planners to book a cruise and CLIA travel agents have access to these deals through the National Plan a Cruise toolkit at cruising.org/cruise-vacationer/national-plan-a-cruise-month. Promotions include offers as high as $1,500 off per couple on a popular river cruise to free upgrades, onboard spending money and even signature beverage packages valued at $1,400. To take advantage of the National Plan a Cruise Month cruise line deals and promotions as well as the expertise from travel agents, CLIA will drive consumers to a CLIA-certified cruise specialist at cruising.org/cruise-vacationer/plan-a-cruise/clia-agent-finder.
