Expedia Cruises Sets Sail With New Tools

Expedia Cruises has announced a new suite of tools designed to support Canadian cruise lines, franchise partners and vacation consultants by making their ability to search for, choose and ultimately distribute cruises easier and more seamless.

The new tools also help partners identify new and evolving pockets of demand, an increasingly important requirement for the industry as it navigates recovery this year, especially following the recent year-long ban for Canada cruises.

Positive North America search data in Q4 last year for cruises in 2021 signified substantial pent-up demand from cruise travellers eager to sail again as soon as possible, although ongoing regulations, testing, vaccine rollout and cleanliness protocols remain at the heart of the industry’s restart.

To help cruise lines respond to fluctuating demand, Expedia Cruises listened to cruise partners and developed new tools and enhanced features in response, including:

• A new agent Cruise Search Results (CSR) view, also known as the grid view, a direct result from partners’ feedback on having a more agent-focused experience so they can more efficiently shop and compare cruises on behalf of their customers
• A Port of Call Filter, that enables partners to specify the port that they want in all itineraries returned from the cruise search
• An enhanced Date Picker tool to navigate across years – an important update given the expectation of a booster years in 2022 & 2023 for the cruise industry
• An updated Itinerary Filter that combines the functionality of the destination filter and the itinerary filter used previously, enabling Expedia Group Partner Central, the technology platform available to travel partners who work with Expedia Group, to support searching for multiple cruise itineraries, such as the Bahamas and the Caribbean
• New Promotion Filters that mean Vacation Consultants can now also sort inventory based on exclusive promotional inventory and rates, including member only pricing deals.

In addition to the tools, Expedia Cruises have set up Local Vacation Consultants to help travellers make an informed decision in a complex travel environment, based on local knowledge and expertise.

The announcement of new tools comes at the same time as Expedia Cruises’ bigger focus on an omni-channel strategy that brings cruise supply onto one platform, creating a more frictionless experience for travellers, and boosting visibility and conversion for cruise lines on Expedia Group sites.

Launched at the end of last year and continuing its rollout into 2021, it consolidates every point of purchase across Expedia Group’s offline and online cruise inventory, allowing customers to shop for an array of cruises and offers on their preferred method (in-store, mobile, web, or phone), either on their own or with the help of an agent.

In addition to cruises, travellers can also add Expedia Group’s extensive supply of flights, lodging, transfers, and activities to fulfil the needs of their entire travel itinerary.

Matthew Eichhorst, president of Expedia Cruises, said: “The cruise industry is experiencing a unique set of challenges and fluctuations as it continues on the road to recovery. Boosted by encouraging search data at the end of last year and January this year, we want to equip our cruise partners with the best possible technology to allow them to harness demand and ensure repeat customers when travellers are sailing again. Both our new suite of tools and the omni-channel strategy allows them to do just that.”