Recommend November 2011 - (Page 22)

RIVER CRUISE product expands even more for 2012 continued from page 20 “We’re doing very well, we’re very, very pleased. Egypt, obviously, isn’t doing well for us, but overall, business is doing quite well. We’ve had a great run for 2011 and forward sales for 2012 are looking even better,” says Richard Marnell, v.p., marketing. “We’re really quite pleased with the launch of the long ships, the additional two long ships that we added, in addition to the four we had originally planned, mainly because they sold so well.” At the same time, he adds, “We’ve just re-launched Russia. We created a micro-site, therealrussia.com, and a mail piece that we’ve just put together on our re-launch of Russia and we’ve re-positioned ourselves in Russia and that’s going very, very well, as well. And China continues to do well for us and Vietnam, too. So overall, I’d have to say we’re extremely pleased and bullish on river cruising and certainly our future.” Currently, Viking has 19 ships in Europe, one in China, one in Vietnam, plus they’re using two in Egypt and five in the Ukraine and Russia and that’s for the 2012 sailing season. And now they’re wrestling with a forecast for 2013. Part of that forecasting very likely will be making a decision about Mekong expansion like everyone else. “We’re investigating our options and we haven’t decided. We will continue to be in Vietnam and we have a good partnership with Pandaw. That’s as concrete as I can be right now,” Marnell says. Still, he adds, “It’s doing very well. We’re very pleased from a quality delivery standpoint and so our customer satisfaction is high and our selling is very strong. So it’s a destination that’s here to stay. And it’s one that we’ll be focused on to develop further as time goes on.” Like Clark, Marnell is mindful of the expansion of interest in river cruising, pointing out the company is seeing more people doing river cruising for the first time, despite the fact the demographics are the same. The ocean cruisers, Marnell admits, were the start, but now, he says, Viking is seeing more and more people from land programs who’ve “…recognized the benefit of unpacking only once and that the mode of transportation rather than the bus is something that’s extremely pleasant. Of course, the ocean cruisers—if you love ocean cruising, you’ll love river cruising—that’s a done deal. They’re locked in, they’ve been sort of the driving force in the category. But then with the land tour people, we’re starting to see more and more people who simply have an aversion to ocean cruising because you can’t get off the boat, because nothing’s included, because they’re floating casinos—whatever the reason may be—now they’re discovering river cruising and they’re discovering what an elegant way it is to transport yourself through some fantastic scenery, and see and really get to know a destination well.” In terms of the next step for river cruising, “You can approach that from a destination standpoint and you can do that from a customer experience standpoint. From a customer experience standpoint, I think that there’s going to be a continuing focus on the destination and providing best in class enrichment associated with the destination and that’s sort of a core focus of ours. In addition to that, I think it’s going to be choice and when I say choice, you know our passengers have become accustomed to doing things how they choose to do it.” Which is why, Marnell says, Viking offers its passengers a choice of excursion styles, giving them the option of three different categories of excursion where one is highly immersive but takes considerably longer; 22 november 2011 one is slower paced for those who have difficulty walking, and then a third is merely the highlights to give passengers as much free time to do whatever they choose to do. To enhance that choice theme, Marnell says, “We’re having a concierge on board for 2012, an individual who is going to be there to guide you should you want to skip the included excursion or skip the excursion meal that’s included or, if you want to do something special at night. Whatever it may be—take in a show, take in a concert, have a fabulous optional dining experience. One of the other things we’ve plugged into is a program called, ‘The world’s most fabulous spas and gyms.’ We are of the mindset that converting a cabin into a spa or a gym is completely sub-par. Our adage is, ‘If you can’t do something well, don’t do it at all.’ So what we’ve done for 2012 is we’ve partnered with fantastic spas and gyms all along the roads of our journeys. In Budapest, for example, we’re docked at the Chain Bridge, which is just steps from the Four Seasons and they have a fantastic spa and gym.” Still another addition for 2012, Viking is adding on all of its itineraries an opportunity for alfresco dining experiences, which they’re combining with a music experience in which they bring on local musicians, typically in the folk genre, with lunch or an early dinner on the sundeck. The company is, in fact, bringing that concept into its hardware design, Marnell says. “We designed our long ships with that capability with the Aqua Vite Terrace in the bow of the boat. So you have the ability when you’re on board to essentially have the capability of having a cafestyle lunch or dinner while sailing or in port in an alfresco setting. It’s something most people love, being able to sit down and have a drink and a bite to eat in an outdoor environment.” And, while Marnell concedes that although Viking has continued to convince more and more people that river cruising is wonderful, “We do recognize that even with the considerable marketing we do, there is still a misconception about what river cruising is and that Viking is the leader.” To improve on that, Viking has found that the best way to communicate river cruising is through video, but not just on the Internet where it requires people to have a preconceived notion to seek out and arrive at their website. Instead, they’ve started a TV campaign targeting those people who are looking for a more enriching cruising experience and those people who are anti-cruise but are looking for destination and enrichment. To accomplish that, they’re sponsoring “Masterpiece Theater.” “We did a survey of our passengers and found that many of them have watched [that show] and we signed a partnership with them and it’s resonating very well with our perspective and past passengers,” he says. n Archived related articles (available on recommend.com): Uniworld’s New “Super Ship” Antoinette (May 2011) contact information AMAWaterways: (800) 626-0126; amawaterways.com Avalon Waterways: (877) 797-8791; avalonwaterways.com Uniworld Boutique River Cruise Collection: (800) 733-7820; uniworld.com Viking River Cruises: (800) 706-1483; vikingrivercruises.com recommend.com http://www.therealrussia.com http://www.recommend.com http://www.amawaterways.com http://www.avalonwaterways.com http://www.uniworld.com http://www.vikingrivercruises.com http://www.recommend.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recommend November 2011

Editor's Notes/Agent Speak
Hotel Desk: RockResorts
Tour Talk: International Expeditions
River Cruise Product Expands Even More for 2012
Hot (or Cool) Toronto is Staid No More
Timeless Boston
South Africa Always Steals the Limelight
BVI: Beauty on the Water
Private Islands Sizzle
Barcelona Will Leave You Beaming
Unspoiled Myanmar is Open for Business
The Lowdown on South America's Capital Highs
Riviera Nayarit in the Pink
The Three Faces of Baja Sur

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