The Seabourn Encore.
The world is entering 2021 during a roaring pandemic, a slow vaccine rollout and the aftershocks of a caustic U.S. election and insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. Would it surprise anyone that this year s Wave season is anything but normal?
Most travel advisors and cruise executives agree that this year s period of heavy cruise promotions is, in fact, shaping up differently, but some are experiencing success, albeit for bookings that are much further out than usual.
And other advisors report seeing a wave of sales for noncruise products. There is nothing close to the traditional surge we get at this time, said Valerie Dorsey, a Cruise Planners travel advisor in Royal Palm Beach, Fla. But we do have clients booking land vacations, all-inclusives in the Caribbean and Mexico, ski trips and even Alaska and European cruises for later in the year.
Carnival Cruise Line’s much heralded return to San Diego following its departure nearly a decade ago has been canceled until at least 2023 as the company moves its planned Mexico and Hawaii voyages to Long Beach.
Before the pandemic disrupted the cruise industry and forced a shutdown of all sailings in U.S. waters back in March, Carnival had planned 34 cruise calls out of San Diego for its 2019-20 schedule that would have normally ended in June. Another 36 were scheduled for the 2021-22 season, and 37 for the 2022-23 schedule, according to the Port of San Diego.
Together, those 107 lost sailings will cost the San Diego Unified Port District $4.4 million in revenue and represent an economic hit of $214 million over three years, port officials estimate.
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Who s who of travel to headline Readers Choice 2020 virtual event
A who s who of the travel industry the CEOs of the three largest cruise companies, leaders of prominent travel agency groups, leisure supplier executives and the chief of a Big Three airline will be featured during the free, virtual Readers Choice Awards event this Thursday, Dec. 17, beginning at 2 p.m. Eastern (11 a.m. Pacific).
The event is being promoted as the afternoon the stars came out, and the list of boldface names is lengthy.
Delta CEO Ed Bastian will be interviewed by Travel Weekly editor in chief Arnie Weissmann, as will Carnival
In a normal year, travel advisers would be preparing right now for Wave Season, traditionally the busiest time of year for selling cruises.
It normally hits right after the New Year and extends throughout the first quarter. Increasingly, as more travelers jump the gun, the selling season can begin late in the year, well before Christmas.
But with nothing being normal in 2020, what happens to Wave Season in 2021 when most cruises are canceled several months into the year?
Will Wave Season be later? Will it be shorter? Will it skip a year? Will it be crazier than ever?
âWave 2021 will be timed differently than the historic norms, which is to be expected,â said Jeff Anderson, co-president of Avoya Travel.