CWT finds big news in cruise bookings

Two-thirds of Carlson Wagonlit Travel Associates (CWT) reported in a survey that their bookings are up this year.

While the top overall domestic and international destinations — Las Vegas and Caribbean cruising, respectively — remain the same, CWT said that the big news is that the number of Associates reporting an increase in overall bookings for the year is up by nearly 4% from 2006 — to 59.5%.

Also, despite the extremely strong euro, Rome and Mediterranean cruising continued to climb the annual fall list with Rome coming in at No. 3 while Mediterranean cruising jumped seven spots.

“Europe — and more specifically, Italy — continues its return among the hottest travel destinations for our customers,” said Roger Block, CTC, executive vice president of the Carlson Wagonlit Travel Associate Division. He attributed the trend to Associates’ finding innovative ways to make Europe vacations more affordable despite the current value of the dollar.

“Their expert advice may also be having an impact on the length of vacation our customers are taking,” said Mr Block, who also disputed recent reports that Americans are taking shorter and fewer vacations.

“Contrary to recent reports about how few vacation days the average American is using in a given year, over 85% of the survey respondents said the average trip they’re booking for the remainder of the year is in the six- to 10-day range,” he said.

A CWT spokesman said that an increase in the number of consumers who have valid passports is among the noteworthy trends the survey found.

“That bodes well for the next passport deadline, which could affect cruise passengers to Mexico, the Caribbean, etc. as early as January 2008,” the spokesman said.

Mediterranean cruising was the “big winner” in the rankings, jumping from 12th to fifth place on the list of top 10 international destinations.

The biggest drop was registered by Ft. Myers, FL. Last year it ranked eighth in the fall survey, this year it dropped eight spots to 16th place.

The top 10 CWT domestic destinations this fall are Las Vegas, Orlando, Honolulu, Kahului (Maui), New York City, San Francisco, Phoenix/Scottsdale, Lihue (Kauai), Miami/Miami Beach and Anaheim/Orange County, CA .

The top 10 CWT international destinations this fall are Caribbean cruises, Cancun, Rome, Riviera Maya, Mediterranean cruises, London, Punta Cana, Montego Bay, Puerto Vallarta and Mexico cruises.

Report by David Wilkening

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