Cape Town agents were treated to a presentation by Oceania Cruises when the cruise line’s senior executives came to the Mother City earlier this month, and jointly with Cruises International, hosted a roadshow on a gorgeous day at the beautiful Red Carnation 12 Apostles Hotel.
Oceania Cruises’ Riet Goetschalckx (Sales Director for Africa) and Roberto Cabello (Business Development – Africa) presented the many attributes of Oceania to the agents, who turned out in numbers. Travel News caught up with Goetschalckx and Cabello during their trip.
Oceania is a mid-size-ship luxury cruise line with an emphasis on destination-intensive itineraries and a focus on culinary exploration.
Port-intensive cruises and the culinary emphasis are certainly two of the factors that set Oceania apart from other luxury cruise lines of similar size ships. And there are more.
Says Goetschalckx: “We were the pioneers of longer stays in port. This gives guests the opportunity for more in-depth excursions, instead of having to limit them to mornings-only tours. Longer stays mean longer lunches, more adventures further inland – that means more time for in-depth immersion in the destination. Selected destinations even have overnight stays so the guests might sample the destination by night. And, on an Oceania cruise, several smaller, boutique ports are combined with well-known ones.”
The culinary experience on the newest ship, Vista (in the Allura Class), for example, is hard to beat. The 1 200-guest ship has one chef for every 10 guests. Vista also offers an elevated mixology programme with speciality cocktails.
Goetschalckx says Oceania has the finest cuisine at sea.
“The cruise line has a big emphasis on locally sourced ingredients, especially fruit and vegetables, bought at the port. We have buffet lunches onboard, showcasing local delicacies. And buying locally reduces our carbon footprint.”
Cabello observed that Oceania’s guests want authentic food experiences. “For example, La Boqueria, the famous market in Barcelona. We have excursions with chefs as guides. Other culinary tours include wine-tasting and cheese tours. Our guests love these.”
Aside from culinary tours, Oceania also offers a range of special-interest tours, such as Go Local, Beyond Blueprints, Go Green and many more.
Goetschalckx says more clients want all-inclusive, which Oceania provides with its normal fares, including dining at all the restaurants on board, along with soft drinks and coffee.
Then there is the simply MORE package, launched last year, which can be added on, when clients are seeking more included value – such as unlimited WiFi; a credit towards shore excursions; a good drinks package (including good brands in champagne, wine and beer), tea, coffee and mocktails.
This works well for rand-sensitive South Africans, who more frequently look for options in which they can pay for more upfront and not have to buy much (in dollars) on board.
“We see potential growth in the South African market and, together with Cruises International, we are looking to expand awareness of our product into other African countries.
“South Africans, along with the Spanish, are the biggest uptakers of our Around the World Cruises. Vista has some long cruises coming up. They can book a cruise up to 197 days, and even work from onboard the ship, using the ship’s Starlink Internet.”
Goetschalckx says Cruises International is Oceania’s exclusive partner in South Africa. “The trade is hugely important; we believe they are valuable, they filter clients and they bring us the best clients.
“After COVID there are many new travel advisers. It’s important for them to understand the different cruise experiences, the styles and the inclusions etc.
“If agents want to earn money, they should sell cruises,” said Goetschalckx. Oceania has a record of 50% repeating cruisers – that speaks for itself.
