Facts Calm Jittery Cruiser Nerves, But Q1 Cruise Cancellations Still Widespread
经过多里·萨尔茨曼(Dori Saltzman)/
随着主流新闻继续对邮轮业的负面报道,克鲁斯卖家本季度面临着一场艰苦的战斗。新闻报道说,在车载案件中的“激增”以及对不愉快隔离的第一人称帐户的新闻报道正在为一些客户在不久的将来预订的巡游者。使情况变得更加困难的是有关港口将邮轮拒之门外的新闻报道,巡航线在最后一分钟取消航行以及航班大量取消。
一些旅行顾问报告说,能够使用事实数据来平息客户的紧张感。其他人说,有些客户根本不想在宝贵的假期(或健康状况)上抓住任何机会。
Plenty of Concerns
Though Julie Schear, owner of a Cruise Planners franchise in Southwest Ranches, FL, said her clients aren’t specifically mentioning the news, they are citing the same concerns being highlighted by the media.
她说:“他们现在对Omicron的传染性程度不太舒服。”“有些人说,他们不想冒险隔离风险,而另一些人说,如果该船无法打电话到预定的港口,他们不想巡航。”
NY-based Dream Vacations franchise owner Andrea Joyce told TMR she’s hearing many of the same concerns.
“The cancellations are due to port cancellations, or they are very fearful of getting COVID and they tell me they won’t even leave their home right now.”
她说,她遇到的最常见问题是关于疾病预防控制中心的4级警告不要巡航。“他们想知道邮轮上是否有很多案例以及协议是否有效。”
Travelsavers Agency的Becky's Travel Biz,Inc。的所有者Becky Smith说,她主要听到客户的健康问题。他们正在收听有关Omicron传染性的新闻报道,并且他们的健康问题或即将进行的手术不想危及。
Facts Calm Some Fears
Schear说,此时,她鼓励客户的情况比下个月的四晚巡游更长。原因?她对在11晚巡游的第二天测试阳性的客户的治疗感到不满意,并且整个时间都被隔离,无法选择在隔离区中进行测试。
But others, like Joyce, Smith, and Randy Motley, owner of Virtuoso-member agency RWM Travel in Olathe, KS, have found that some clients are open to having their fears calmed. They still want to cruise but they need their concerns put into perspective.
“When asked questions as a result of the misconceptions made by the CDC and the press, it is a great opportunity to educate them,” Joyce said. “We can send them facts from CLIA and send them the cruise lines’ health and safety protocol information.”
In particular, she highlights the numbers reported by CLIA, including how much lower the percentage of COVID-19 occurrences are onboard ships versus on land.
“People who have cruised before are very receptive to this information and feel the press is not fair to the cruise industry.”
Smith told TMR many of her clients feel the same way.
“Many of the guests are well aware that the CDC and news media are putting more hype on the cruise industry than should be done,” she says. “Our guests are aware of what is being done and the majority are proceeding and enjoying their vacations.”
And Motley said he’s also using industry statements and facts to counter any fears his clients might be feeling.
“我想接触反对通知ation is stopping the panic,” he told TMR. “Hard facts seem to be quieting the hysteria.”
Both Motley and Smith are being proactive about getting in front of their clients’ concerns.
Motley reaches out to his clients with their options and shares a press release from ASTA that he says “really helps put the current situation in perspective.”
史密斯使用社交媒体向客户展示自己的巡航经验,以便他们自己看到情况。
“他们看到了图片。他们看到我在做什么,”她说。“这有助于使他们平静下来。”
就像乔伊斯(Joyce)一样,她也会在可能的情况下试图抵制误解。“如果这是一个客户,我非常了解他们真的想旅行,而且他们通常不是膝盖反应的人,我会让他们平静下来。”
Like Smith, Annie Scrivanich, senior vice president of Cruise Specialists, a Travel Leaders agency, says that sharing first-hand client and staff experiences is more effective than using industry data.
But not all concerns are the same and equally quelled by hard facts, both Scrivanich and Ted Blank, host agency manager of a Minnesota-based Travel Leaders, told Travel Market Report.
“Most of our travelers are less concerned about a health risk but more concerned about a disruption to their vacation caused by an incidental Covid positive test,” Blank said. “Facts on the likelihood of this are sparse, and headline-grabbing anecdotes abound, so this is difficult to counter.”
斯克里瓦尼奇同意。“这是他们个人舒适水平和信心与事实数据的问题,这将使我们前进。”
Some Cancellations, Some Postponements
Motly,其客户大部分时间在三月或晚些时候都在巡航,但到目前为止,他为反对新闻媒体的努力导致取消零。
cru巡航专家,专门从事世界ises and grand voyages, has also had minimal impact, said Scrivanich.
“今年我们的取消率低于2021年的同一时间。差异主要少于重部航行。2022年,由于重部航行和Covid的行驶,我们的客人被取消了。”
But not everyone is as lucky. Blank, Joyce, Schear, and Smith have all had clients cancel or postpone first quarter cruises.
“We are seeing quite a few, mostly postponements (75%),” said Blank. “We have also had several clients who have had cruises canceled by the cruise line, and clients who have simply canceled.”
They’ve also had dozens of clients on their fourth or fifth cancellation, many of whom have given up trying to postpone and want refunds.
史密斯告诉TMR,在过去的一周中,她一天被取消了四次。她也有一些客户取消和重新预订。尽管大多数人都在第一季度,但她已经取消了四月。
乔伊斯说,她最大的担忧不是取消当前预订。令人信服的是新巡洋舰考虑巡航假期。
“我没有接到新巡洋舰的任何电话。当我与从未巡航并建议巡游的人交谈时,他们很快就对巡航说负面的话。当我试图对他们进行教育时,他们没有兴趣。这对我来说是一个巨大的问题。”
Blank said he’s seeing a similar trend in terms of Caribbean cruises, but not as much for destinations like Alaska and Europe.