Some 200 travel agents were entertained by the Backstreet Boys in a special performance on board the Carnival Spirit for the “SEAs the Opportunity”, 2016 World Leading Cruise Lines Summit.
So, they were not the original Backstreet Boys, but they were the boys from P&O Cruises who really nailed it in the Battle of the Cruise Lines. The P&O Cruise team won over Holland America team, who took the stage as the Blues Brothers and rocked out.
The summit opened last night as the Carnival Spirit cruised out of Sydney, where for the next four days, industry members will get a taste of the cruise holiday magic that has that has resulted in more than 1 million a year holidaying at sea.
The Price is Right’s Larry Emdur opened the summit with a cocktail party, and will continue to MC for the duration of the summit.
Speaking today from the summit, Carnival Cruise Lines Vice President, Jennifer Vandekreeke welcomed all guests on board, adding she was pleased to announce Carnival Spirit will remain in Australian waters, based in Sydney full-time until 2018.
While Carnival Corporation & PLC President, Arnold Donald, could not make it on board for the summit, he spoke via video link, along with Carnival Australia Executive Chairman, Ann Sherry.
Donald touched on the success of cruising in Australia in the past four years, adding the true competitors were not other cruise lines, but the land based holiday goers.
The focus therefore for Carnival was to improve the fleet, ensure cruises were relevant for today’s cruisers, and the focus on new markets, specifically China.
Sherry added the aim for the industry was 2 million cruise passengers in the near future.
The WLCL Summit will continue for the next three days.
