Q. What’s your role?
A. I’m part of the Cruise Support Team. Anything a consultant needs in terms of cruise – whether it’s a quick question, a complicated scenario, training or anything in between – I’m here to support every franchisee.
Q. Why should someone make cruise a focus for their business?
A. Cruise is the fastest-growing area in travel – passenger numbers increase every year and there is a high repeat booking rate for cruise clients. Cruise also offers higher commission levels (the average booking value is higher than land holidays).
Q. Tell us some examples of cruise bookings.
A. We’ve seen some of our best-ever sales recently. One new travel consultant made a £39,000 booking on just her second cruise booking! The combination of training, confidence and experience empowers you to offer cruises to clients and turn that into significant commission.
Q. OK so tell us a bit about the specialist training and support you offer.
A. Everyone who joins The Travel Franchise and becomes a Not Just Travel agent automatically gets access to our Cruise Division as part of their franchise package. This means you can book cruises right away and get our support with anything – from using the systems to deciding which cruise to offer to your clients. You get access to our beginner cruise training (see below) plus, if you really want to grow your cruise business, we also offer the Cruise Expert Club – this is where you can really focus, build confidence, and develop specialist knowledge.
Q. OK so tell us a bit more about the free Beginner cruise training.
A. Our free New to Cruise Course is perfect for beginners or anyone who has gaps in their knowledge. We cover: The value of cruising compared to land holidays (what’s included in a fare); cabin types – what they look like and how to explain them to clients; how to introduce cruise to clients (many people don’t even know they’re potential cruise customers until you tell them!).
Q. And the Expert Cruise Club?
A. If you join this club you can access our Intermediate Course and the Advanced Cruise Course. By the end, you’ll be a true cruise expert. The training format is one hour a week with me – a chance to ask questions, get support, and talk all things cruise – plus two short self-study sessions each week for six weeks to build confidence gradually.
Q. What other opportunities do you offer for people to experience cruise first-hand?
A. Experiencing cruise for yourself is really important, so we offer:
- Ship Visits: We invite you to explore real ships, see the cabins, taste the food, experience the theatre – so you know exactly what you’re selling. This year has been one of the best years for ship visits, and we have many more planned.
- Seminars at Sea: You come on board for a real cruise at sea, spend time with us, ask questions, and receive bespoke training while on the ship.
- FAM Trips (Familiarisation Trips): This is when a cruise supplier invites you for a free cruise on a specific ship to sleep in the cabins, enjoy the food and entertainment, take part in shore excursions, and get fully immersed. This year we’ve run a river cruise down the Danube with Uniworld and we have a Riviera river cruise on the Douro coming up in October.
Q. Who do you work with to provide all of this?
A. We work very closely with major cruise suppliers – names you’ll know like Royal Caribbean, P&O, Norwegian Cruise Line, Virgin Voyages, Oceania Cruises, and Regent Seven Seas.
They often run training events around the country, and we attend these regularly. We also have a direct line to suppliers, so if your client needs something bespoke – say a cruise from Miami followed by a camper van trip – we can arrange it through our consolidators.
