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ACV is protecting commissions too, plus it has a new president
He again noted what the travel industry already knew: that so-called vaccination passports have long been used for international travel, notably the ‘yellow card’ to show proof against illness like yellow fever for international travel.
“We have already seen the importance of vaccinations for international travel,” said Trudeau.
“When it comes to the details, we are still working on them,” he added. “NOW IS NOT THE TIME TO BE THINKING ABOUT TRAVEL”
Health Minister Patty Hajdu reiterated the government’s message, taking the wording a step beyond the usual ‘now is not the time to travel’.
“Now is not the time for Canadians to be thinking about travel,” said Hajdu.
The travel industry has taken issue with this kind of messaging, as it jeopardizes not just bookings for travel now, which are understandably almost nil, but also future travel. The retail travel sector has been decimated by the pandemic, and generating client interest in travel for later in 2021 and into 2022 has been a lifeline for the battered industry.
Last month Hajdu said the G7 countries, including Canada, have made a commitment to stay connected and collaborate on the issue of vaccination passports.
Last week Hajdu said: “We are committed to having these conversations [about vaccination passports] with our international partners.”
When decisions are made at the international level, Hajdu added, “we want to make sure Canadians have those documents for international travel.”
Trudeau was also asked whether proof of vaccination would be sufficient for Canadians currently abroad who want to come home to Canada. “We will rely on the evidence at every stage,” said Trudeau. He said Canada will continue its talks with the U.S. on the subject, noting that the U.S. “may take measures before us.”
Lucie Guillemette, EVP and CCO, Air Canada and President, ACV
MONTREAL — ACV has a new president: Lucie Guillemette.
Guillemette is already a very familiar name in the industry and at Air Canada, where she has served as EVP and Chief Commercial Officer since 2017. She’s been a member of Air Canada’s executive team since 2008.
Guillemette will tackle all three roles, replacing Craig Landry at ACV, who retains his other title as EVP, Operations at Air Canada. Landry had served as president of ACV since late 2015.
ACV says the change in leadership comes as a result of a commercial reassessment and adapting of strategies following the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Nino Montagnese, Vice President – ACV, will report directly to Guillemette as he did to Landry, and retains his responsibility to lead the senior leadership team at ACV in all aspects of the day-to-day management of company.
“Lucie’s expertise in leading the team and her accumulated knowledge in revenue, product, distribution, sales and network management will be a tremendous asset in establishing a solid future for Air Canada Vacations,” said Landry.
“I look forward to leading this agile team with a strong entrepreneurial spirit into its next chapter. Now is the time to strengthen our relationships and lay the groundwork for our full recovery by leveraging the commercial synergies that exist between Air Canada and Air Canada Vacations. I am certainly very pleased to have Air Canada Vacations join the Air Canada commercial team,” said Guillemette.
On the heels of the April 12 financial assistance announcement from Air Canada and the federal government, ACV notified the trade that ACV would be offering refunds as well, in the wake of the pandemic.
Effective April 13 ACV began accepting and processing refund requests from eligible customers whose vacations were cancelled as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
ACV’s revised policy covers trips cancelled by ACV or by the customer. Customers have the option to request a refund for any reason if their booking was made before April 13, 2021 for travel on or after February 1, 2020.
“We are pleased to announce that we will not be recalling commissions from agents once refunds are processed,” says ACV in its statement, following a similar policy announced by Air Canada.
ACV added that it is reaching out directly to travel agents with eligible affected customers, to guide them through the refund request process. ACV is also providing a FAQ document outlining all terms and conditions and further information regarding the announcement.
Katina Athanasiou, Chief Sales Offi cer, NCL
“We’re ready”: NCL’s Chief Sales Offi cer Katina Athanasiou on the new 2021 sailings, and a new commission policy
by Kathryn Folliott
TORONTO — The timing had to be right for NCL’s return to sailing. And fi nally, it is, says the cruise line’s Chief Sales Offi cer, Katina Athanasiou.
“From the very beginning we said we wouldn’t come back until we were ready,” Athanasiou told Travelweek.
“We’re ready.”
Travelweek’s interview with Athanasiou followed NCL’s announcement that it has opened the books on brand new 2021 sailings on three ships, its fi rst in more than a year amid the pandemic.
Norwegian Joy will sail week-long Caribbean itineraries out of Montego Bay starting Aug. 7, 2021. Norwegian Gem will also sail the Caribbean, out of La Romana, D.R. starting Aug. 15. And the fi rst cruises on NCL’s 2021 schedule, Greek Isles sailings out of Athens (Piraeus), kick off July 25 on Norwegian Jade.
All passengers will be required to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination before boarding.
Just hours into the fi rst day of sales for the new 2021 cruises, Athanasiou said bookings were already strong, not just for sailings on the three return-to-service ships (Norwegian Joy, Gem and Jade) but also forward bookings for cruises on all ships in later 2021 and beyond. In May 2020 NCL opened the books on cruises all the way to 2023.
Speaking of forward bookings, Athanasiou credits Canadian travel agents with leading the way on bookings for NCL’s Tahiti cruises onboard Norwegian Spirit.
NCL’s Canadian travel partners have been steadfastly loyal to the cruise line throughout the pandemic, she says.
“I want to give a huge shout-out to our Canadian travel partners,” Athanasiou told Travelweek.
“We couldn’t do it without them.” NEW COMMISSION POLICY
NCL’s travel partners are now hearing about a change to the company’s commission policy that will see commissions paid when bookings are paid in full.
“That means our travel partners will no longer have to wait for a future cruise credit (FCC) booking to sail to get paid,” said Athanasiou.
The policy update become offi cial May 1 and will be retroactive to April 6.
“It was really important to us to support our travel partners,” said Athanasiou.
Also for travel agents, NCL has unveiled details about its new ‘Great Cruise Comeback Giveaway’ trade promotion. Every deposited booking on the three return-to-service ships earns agents a chance to win 1 of 500 balcony staterooms onboard any of NCL’s 2021 itineraries.
Meanwhile, for passengers, NCL has also extended its temporary Peace of Mind cancellation policy to passengers sailing on cruises booked by April 30, 2021 with embarkation dates through Oct. 31, 2021. These passengers have the fl exibility to cancel their cruise 15 days prior to departure. Those who take advantage of the Peace of Mind policy will receive a full refund in the form of a future cruise credit which may be applied to any sailing through Dec. 31, 2022. In addition, fi nal payment for all voyages with embarkations through Oct. 31, 2021, will require payment 60 days prior to embarkation versus the standard 120 days.
It’s all coming together for NCL, which like every other U.S.-based large-ship cruise line has seen operations suspended for more than a year amid the pandemic.
The announcement about the new sailings on Norwegian Joy, Gem and Jade “was a boost in confi dence for NCL, our guests and our travel partners,” says Athanasiou. “WE DIDN’T WANT TO COMPROMISE ON THE EXPERIENCE"
We asked Athanasiou about the newly announced 2021 itineraries. “I think the Caribbean will sell very well,” she said. “We wanted to take the time to make sure we could provide great ports of call, great dining, and we’ve done that.” For the Med cruises, she notes that NCL has home-ported in Athens for many years.
All passengers will be required to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination before boarding, as NCL works to prioritize health and safety protocols along with the guest experience. Crew will be vaccinated as well. There will be two antigen COVID-19 tests - one at embarkation and another at disembarkation. Passengers will also be required to wear face coverings in public areas onboard the ship, although not in their staterooms or while dining.
These requirements will be in place for this fi rst phase of NCL’s return to sailing. “This is phase 1,” says Athanasiou.
Phase 1 runs through Oct. 31, 2021. For sailings Nov. 1 and onwards, NCL will review its health and safety protocols and make any tweaks as necessary.
Also in phase 1, at least until Aug. 31, all passengers will be required to take only NCL-operated shore excursions.
All of these protocols are in line with what other cruise lines are doing as they return to service amid the pandemic.
With the protocols in place, “we felt super confi dent and comfortable knowing we could restart sailings the right way,” said Athanasiou. “For us, the availability of the vaccine has been a game changer.”
The successful vaccination rollout in the U.S. has seen more than 100 million people get at least their fi rst dose already.
NCL hasn't skimped on days in port. The week-long Norwegian Joy and Norwegian Gem sailings out of Montego Bay and La Romana will have two at-
sea days each. Norwegian Jade’s Med sailings won’t have any at-sea days. “We didn’t want to compromise on the experience,” said Athanasiou. “We’re ensuring guests get maximum port time, safely.” NCLH’S ASK FROM THE CDC
NCL's announcement about its new Caribbean and Med sailings came just days after the CDC updated its Conditional Sailing Order for the cruise industry with new measures, prompting CLIA to cry foul. The CDC is getting pushback for mixed messages after it CDC also relaxed its guidance for domestic air travel for vaccinated travellers. On April 8 Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced that the state of Florida had filed a lawsuit against the federal government with an eye to force the CDC’s hand. Just about all of the major ocean-going cruise lines in the U.S. have their headquarters in Florida, plus the state is home to some of the busiest cruise ship terminals and ports in the world.
Amid the furor, NCL’s parent company, NCLH, which also operates Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises, sent a letter to the CDC stating its intentions to restart cruising from U.S. ports on July 4, and asking for the CSO to be lifted. The July 4 date is in keeping with President Biden’s statement in recent weeks that as long as the U.S.’s vaccination rollout stays on track, July 4 could be America’s Independence Day from COVID-19.
We talked to Athanasiou about NCLH’s ask from the CDC, and asked her which U.S. ports NCL would be looking at for its first U.S. sailings if the CDC gives the green light. “We continue to evaluate the situation,” she said, mentioning two of NCL’s ships, Pride of America, based in Hawaii, and Norwegian Bliss sailing out Seattle.
The cruise industry’s Alaska sailings, typically sailing out of ports including Seattle and also Vancouver, are still in question for summer 2021, ever since the Canadian government announced an extension on the Canadian cruise ban barring large ships from Canadian ports until at least Feb. 28, 2022.
Meanwhile, while travel south of the border is ramping up, the Canadian travel industry is still dealing with the suspension of sun flights until April 30 and
potentially longer, plus the 14-day quarantine including the 3-day hotel quarantine, PCR test requirements and PHAC’s advisory against all non-essential travel. No matter what happens, NCL is just thrilled to be selling cruises for the 2021 cruise season. Athanasiou says the company is focused on flexibility and strategy in these unpredictable times. That, and giving guests an unparalleled experience. “Things can change rapidly and we want to stay as nimble and flexible as possible while still executing an amazing experiential product,” Athanasiou told Travelweek. “That was critical for us.” Agents can watch NCL’s comeback play out in the cruise line’s new ‘EMBARK - The Series’ docuseries, just announced. The first episode – titled ‘Great Cruise Comeback’ (26 mins.), premieres on Thurs. April 15 at 8 p.m. EST at NCL.com/embark. The series will offers viewers a behind-the-scenes look at NCL’s journey back to sailing, from March 2020 and the start of the pandemic, to when the first ship sets sail in July 2021, says Travelweek 2020 ads:TravelWeek 2016 2021-03-31 10:56 AM Page 1 Athanasiou.
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NEW LOOK, SAME TRUSTED SOURCE
Top Story Your new Travelweek.ca has arrived
TORONTO — An informed, reliable and up-to-the-minute news source is crucial in these challenging times. Staying on top of the latest travel industry updates is more important than ever. Travelweek’s new-look website at Travelweek.ca delivers all the in-depth reporting that travel agents and the trade have relied on for close to 50 years, with a brand new high-impact, high-function design. The redesigned Travelweek.ca is an ideal complement for Travelweek Daily, also sporting a new look, & Travelweek magazine, now in digital format. “Travelweek is known for its print magazines. But we have invested heavily in our digital products too, for more than 20 years now. Between travelweek.ca and Travelweek Daily we’re a leader and an innovator as a digital news source for the Canadian travel industry,” says Devin Kinasz, Publisher of Travelweeek. “And now our beautiful new website showcases our digital offerings even more.” It’s all at Travelweek.ca...
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