Advantage will trial free one-to-one consultations for its members from next month to help them increase their cruise sales.
Cruise Director Jonny Peat (pictured above) said they will take a ‘deep dive’ into an agency’s business to come up with ways for them to grow.
“We’re always looking for ways to think outside the box and deliver real value to our members,” said Jonny. “The breadth of knowledge and experience across our group, and available to us, is expansive, and we want to make it accessible to everyone keen to develop their cruise business.”
He said Advantage was likely to be able to support ’10 to 15′ members initially. “We will find a way to support more if the demand is there, we want to make sure this is available to everyone, including new-to-cruise and experienced agents.”
Further details will be announced shortly, but Commercial Director John Sullivan said he was open to offering the sessions to non-members. “It is a unique thing to do and I might be very happy to extend the service outside Advantage,” he added.
The scheme was announced at the Advantage Latitude Cruise Conference, taking place onboard Princess Cruises’ Sky Princess, where it was also revealed that Advantage saw a 10% increase in cruise sales and an 11% rise in average booking values in the first eight months of 2025, compared to the same period last year.
The consortium has seen particularly strong growth in expedition cruising, which was up 34% year on year, followed by river cruising, which was up 24%.
Ocean cruise sales were up 10% and luxury cruising was up 8%.
“Ocean cruise lines entered the year in a much stronger sold position, which has meant prices held firmer for 2025 sailings while keener pricing for key 2026 dates has encouraged an earlier booking curve,” said Jonny.
Passenger numbers on forward bookings for 2026 are up 38% compared to the same period last year, while for 2027 they’re up 62%.
“Overall confidence for forward bookings remains strong, and we continue to urge our members to encourage customers to book early if they have a particular ship, cabin type or destination in mind,” added Jonny.
The Western Mediterranean is the most popular destination for British cruisers, with passenger numbers up 34% across all future seasons. This includes departures from UK ports such as Southampton, Dover and Liverpool, said Advantage, as well as fly-cruise options. The Norwegian Fjords are also growing in popularity, with bookings up 18%.
Advantage said river cruising ‘continues to serve as an accessible entry point for first-time cruisers’, with up to 65% of river cruise bookings coming from customers new to the sector. The Danube and Rhine continue to dominate, but Portugal’s Douro Valley is the fastest-growing river cruise destination.
The 46-65 age group is increasingly driving demand for polar expedition cruising, said Advantage, while Asia leads as a bucket-list choice within the luxury segment.
Japan remains strong, added Jonny, while enquiries for South America are on the rise.
To help further expand its business, Advantage is planning to launch a Cruise Advisory Panel, which will include members from outside the cruise industry. “This is about making sure we are not insular, to make us think differently internally, and to make sure we know what’s coming next,” said John.
The panel, which has yet to be appointed, will meet quarterly.
