January 2010

Pre- and Post-Cruise Stays
by John Hawks

These stays are an extra day (or several days) tacked onto the beginning or the end of a client's cruise vacation. For example, if the sailing departs Fort Lauderdale on a Friday afternoon, the agent suggests that the client fly into FLL on Thursday and spend the night in a hotel near the port (or, if the ship returns to port on a Saturday, spend that Saturday night in the hotel for a Sunday flight home).

Savvy agents recognize the value of recommending these pre- and post-cruise hotel stays:

They prevent problems with late or canceled flights, especially for embarkation. Many travel agents can share horror stories about those clients who insisted on booking a flight arriving in the embarkation city just a few hours before the ship's scheduled departure, only to miss the ship due to airline troubles! Arriving the day before the cruise departure and staying in a local hotel prevents such mishaps.
They minimize jet lag, especially on longer sailings. The last thing your clients may want to do after a two-week voyage, for example, is rush from the cruise port to the airport. Instead, they can relax with that extra post-cruise hotel night and transfer without fuss to the airport the next day.
They give your clients a chance to experience the embarkation and disembarkation ports. Remind your clients that, with the typical flight schedule, they may see very little of the ports where their cruise leaves and returns - so, a pre- or post-cruise hotel night may provide enough time for a quick city tour.
They increase your total commission earnings. Many leading cruise lines no longer pay commission on the airfares booked via their air/sea programs (or, if they do, the commission rates are minimal), and your clients will always want you to find the very best airfares for them. Having that extra day or two on either end of the cruise dates will give you much more flexibility in lining up airfare deals or using options such as consolidator fares. (And, the money you save on the airfares could actually pay for the extra hotel nights!)

To locate a wide range of pre- and post-cruise hotel options, try the booking engines offered by OSSN supplier members such as CCRA or Travel Bound. Also, you can consult the hotel companies that participate in the TRUE Hotel Program, if you're a TRUE agent.

Keep these tips in mind as you recommend more pre- and post-cruise hotel stays in 2010:

Find hotels in each port that cater to cruise passengers. For example, properties seeking this type of business will often offer extra values such as free or reduced-cost port shuttles and free parking for your clients' cars during the cruise.
Match the hotel types with the cruise line types. In other words, don't stick your luxury clients taking that world cruise segment in a budget-brand hotel the night before their departure just because the hotel is close to the port!
Pick properties rated for high service levels. Don't pick a hotel solely on price points. Make sure that the hotels you use for these pre- and post-cruise stays have a reputation for great service, so that your clients don't have a bad experience the night before (or the night after) their fun on the ship.
Offer a range of options for clients to pick properties. You might suggest three properties, for instance - hotels priced higher and lower than the property you're really recommending, so that your clients have flexibility in picking where they'd like to stay.
Ask the cruise lines for ideas. Surprisingly, some lines (particularly luxury brands) now offer special deals on pre- and post-hotel stays in port with rates (and commission pay levels) that are competitive with anything you'd find on your own.

(Credits: David T. Flaherty; Pete; Choice Hotels; Embassy Suites)

Pre- and Post-Cruise Stays by John Hawks

Pre- and Post-Cruise Stays
by John Hawks