Capping the first day of TravelManagers’ 2022 conference was the great debate of the cruise industry: river vs. ocean, which one takes the cake?
The debate was moderated by the executive general manager of TravelManagers Michael Galaz, who hosted the director of sales at Norwegian Cruise Line ANZ Damian Borg, and the head of sales at Globus Peter Douglas.
The two marched up the aisles of the conference to triumphant music in comical sailor outfits, ready to take the stage. Once greeted by Galaz, Borg and Douglas exchanged banter to the crowd’s uproarious laughter and applause. A combination of phallic innuendos, gentle ribbing and even a brief mention of “it’s not the size of the ship, but how you use it” had the audience’s attention instantly.
The pair discussed passenger experience, what their respective cruises had on offer and why their forms of cruising provided a superior holiday.
Borg touched on NCL’s recently completed Norwegian Prima which ventured to Iceland and featured Katy Perry as the godmother of the ship, while Douglas discussed Globus’ array of upcoming and recently completed river cruises through Avalon Waterways.
There was even some audience participation with everyone being asked to stand up if they had gone on either an ocean or river cruise in their life, with the vast majority of the audience standing. Then the audience was asked who had been on both an ocean and river cruise, with about two-thirds remaining standing.
The audience was then asked who had been on both types of cruises in the past week, leaving one man standing, CEO of House Of Travel Joe Araullo.
The debate was concluded with Araullo discussing his cruising experiences and joining in on the banter with fellow debaters.
