Windstar Cruises names Helen Beck as managing director, Global Commercial based in the UK

Windstar Cruises announced today the appointment of Helen Beck to the new role of managing director, global commercial. Beck will be based in London.

Helen brings many years of experience in the travel industry with 26 years spent in the cruise industry. Most recently, Beck was head of global sales excellence for Explora Journeys. Previous to that role, she was vice president of international sales and marketing at Crystal Cruises. Other roles include regional director for Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity and Azamara; and international sales leisure manager at Millenium and Copthorne Hotels.

In her new role with Windstar Helen will lead efforts to build commercial operations in the UK and expand the line’s presence in key markets in Europe, Australia and Latin America. She will define the global sales and distribution strategy and identify new partners to grow the base of sellers around the world looking to expand their small ship cruising sales. She will work to set up Windstar’s global entities, hire new team members, work with IT and marketing to launch new global websites and booking engines, and be responsible for the company’s growth outside of North America.

“Windstar is undergoing an exciting time of change with new technology, a rebrand and two new ships joining our fleet soon,” said Windstar chief commercial officer Janet Bava. “Helen is coming on board to help leverage this growth further into International markets, and we are very happy to have someone with her skill set join us at this key point in time for the brand.”

The global commercial role is a new one for Windstar with more hires expected as Helen builds her team in the coming months. Augustus Lonsdale, Windstar’s current head of sales in the UK, will work with Helen and continue to oversee Windstar’s GSA relationships. Dianna Rom, Windstar’s vice president of sales in North America, will work alongside Helen on key relationships with consortia and national account partners as the company expands internationally.

“I am truly excited by the opportunity that this new role presents to build on the already solid foundations that Windstar Cruises has across the globe,” Beck said.

Windstar developments

Windstar is expanding from a six ship fleet to eight soon. New developments for 2025 include the debut of Star Seeker, a 224-guestall-suite yacht, joining the fleet in December 2025. Star Seeker joins the line’s Star Class line of upscale yachts bringing the fleet to five Star Class plus three Wind Class sailing yachts, all carrying between 148 and 342 guests. In 2026, Star Seeker’s sister ship Star Explorer joins the fleet.

Windstar sails year-round in the Mediterranean, and new in 2026, a series of short taster cruises will homeport in London.  In spring 2026, Star Pride will sail a three-night ‘Belgium: A Sweet Getaway’ cruise and two departures of a four-night St Malo Getaway cruise.

On the horizon in 2027 and expected to cause huge demand in the Australian market, a second yacht, Wind Star, joins Star Breeze in French Polynesia, increasing capacity and offering a choice of a sailing or all-suite yacht in the tropical destination including the popular seven-day ‘Dreams of Tahiti’ cruise.