Cruise Corner

Cruise Trade News

Join the Cruise Trade News editorial team as they embark on a series of in-depth conversations with some of the cruise sector's biggest names. This podcast aims to arm travel agents and cruise industry professionals with the latest insights and product information to help them sell cruise holidays with confidence.

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39 episodes
Updated July 27

Episodes39

Newest first

Dec 16, 2025 · 37 min
Inside Ambassador's Caribbean adventure
Ambassador Cruise Line turned heads when it announced the launch of its first-ever Caribbean fly-cruise season at the turn of the year. So, what can the trade expect from the line's foray across the pond? In the latest episode of the Cruise Corner Podcast, co-host Jack Carter sits down with interim head of trade Karen Cameron and business development executive Jade Cheadle to lift the lid on the new deployment, while taking a closer look at the vessel spearheading this venture, Renaissance. This episode is sponsored by Ambassador Cruise Line.
Dec 2, 2025 · 21 min
Luxury leader Anna Nash lifts the lid on Explora III
From crossing the River Dart on a small passenger ferry to get to school everyday to leading one of the world's most exciting luxury cruise lines, Anna Nash's career trajectory was written in the stars and discovered in the seas. On this week's episode of the Cruise Corner, co-host Will Payne sits down with the Explora Journeys president to take a look back at her tenure in luxury travel, and how her beginnings in the south west set her on a path to becoming a key driving force behind the MSC Group's foray into the high-end market. Nash also offers insight into the imminent launch of Explora Journeys' third vessel, Explora III, while outlining the company's plans to work with its trade partners to ensure the ship hits the high seas with a splash when it makes its debut next summer.
Nov 18, 2025 · 24 min
The secret to a four-decade career in travel
What does it take to maintain a successful career in travel for nearly 40 years? For AmaWaterways director of sales UK and Europe Andrea Stafford, a can-do attitude, an eagerness to learn and enough energy to sustain multiple late nights and early mornings. In this week's episode of the Cruise Corner Podcast, Stafford chats with co-host Will Payne about her glittering four-decade tenure in travel, which started in 1986 with Lunn Polly (now known as TUI). Payne and Stafford also discuss the imminent launch of AmaWaterways' AmaSofia on the Danube and the Rhine and AmaMaya on the Mekong, as well as Stafford's highlights of 2025 and her predictions for the cruise sector in 2026.
Oct 28, 2025 · 30 min
The story behind Scenic's rapid trade growth
Co-host Will Payne sits down with Scenic and Emerald Cruises head of sales Jonathan Davies to discuss the company’s standout year, the power of product diversification, and why travel agents remain central to the brand’s success story. Fresh from a stellar 12 months that saw Scenic report a 35 per cent year-on-year rise in trade sales, Davies reflects on his journey since stepping into the role in 2023. He also reveals how the brand’s growing river and ocean portfolios – showcased perfectly when Scenic Gem met Scenic Eclipse in Honfleur – continue to offer agents unique opportunities to sell across sectors.
Oct 21, 2025 · 24 min
Balancing parenting with cruise sales
Juggling parenting with running the sales operation of one of the world's biggest cruise lines isn't for everyone. But for Princess Cruises' UK and Ireland sales director Hayley Moore, Teams meetings and quarterly reports go hand in hand with Thomas the Tank Engine and tea parties In this week's episode of the Cruise Corner, co-host Will Payne sits down with Moore to discuss the challenges of balancing the two roles, and her advice for her fellow parents in the cruise industry. We also take a look back at the special Princess Cruises edition of Cruise Trade News February, and what the line has in store for its travel agent partners in the coming months amid the launch of Star Princess.
Oct 7, 2025 · 19 min
Cruise Corner podcast: Cruise Summit special
Join us live from the 2025 Cruise Summit, as hosts Jack Carter and Will Payne catch up with speakers and delegates to get the inside scoop on this year's key takeaways. The annual event delved into the importance of the "critical" mature market to the future of cruise, how podcasts can be utilised as an effective marketing tool and why the likes of TikTok and Meta are crucial to enticing new customers. We also welcome our new co-host, Rashmi Narayan, who talks to HX's (Hurtigruten Expeditions) Mark Walter about the importance of knowing your customer to ensure repeat bookings and higher conversions.
Sep 18, 2025 · 29 min
How to find value in the ultra-luxury market
After two decades at Carnival House, which came to an end following the abrupt closure of Carnival Cruise Line’s UK office, Luke Smith finds himself at the beginning of a new adventure. “It was a really great period of my life and I was lucky to work with people I consider family,” he says. The new VP sales UK & EMEA for Crystal sits down with Cruise Corner co-host Jack Carter to discuss leadership, how agents can find value in the ultra-luxury market and his excitement to work for a cruise line with a start-up culture.
Sep 12, 2025 · 22 min
CLIA Cruise Week special
"The UK’s biggest cruise event” is back and bigger than ever (no, really). More than 3,000 agents have signed up for the CLIA Cruise Week campaign, which sees the industry come together for seven days of activations and events, all designed to champion cruise and drive post-summer bookings. A variety of promotional activities, including customer-facing events, internal training, ship visits and social media campaigns will combine to support the largest-ever coordinated cross-agent cruise gathering in Cruise Week history. Cruise Corner co-host Jack Carter sits down with Andy Harmer, managing director of CLIA UK & Ireland, and Lynn Narraway, Seabourn's VP of UK & EMEA, to find out what agents can expect from this year’s event and why it’s never been more important to shout about cruise.
Aug 26, 2025 · 32 min
How to make the pitch for expedition less intimidating
From scoring in the FA Cup on national television to leading the line for HX’s global sales operation, Nathaniel Sherborne’s career has had more twists and turns than prime Lionel Messi. Nathaniel sits down with Cruise Corner co-host Jack Carter to explore how being a leader in the changing room enabled him to flourish in a sales environment, before revealing how HX is attempting to make the expedition product less ‘scary’ for the wider travel trade.
Aug 18, 2025 · 22 min
The secret to selling luxury expedition
When Anthony Daniels took the helm of Ponant’s UK & Ireland operations just over a year ago, he was tasked with making waves in the luxury expedition market. Fifteen months on, the French line has boosted its UK market share and is on the brink of securing its own ATOL licence – but Daniels is far from finished. With both luxury and expedition cruising among the industry’s fastest-growing sectors, Ponant’s position is enviable. This week’s Cruise Corner Podcast is a family affair as Daniels sits down with Cruise Trade News editor (and son) Will Payne to reveal how he plans to take the brand to even greater heights. The conversation also dives into Daniels’ career journey, his advice for up-and-coming cruise professionals, and what’s next for Ponant in the months ahead.
Aug 11, 2025 · 16 min
How to sell expedition cruising
With its growing fleet of state-of-the-art ships and ability to transport travellers to furthest reaches of the globe, the expedition sector is perfectly poised to help agents attract a new profile of client. In this special episode of the Cruise Corner, recorded in Svalbard at the CLIA Expedition Showcase last month, the association’s UK and Ireland managing director Andy Harmer OBE provides a closer look at this market segment, providing tips on how the trade can capitalise on this fast-evolving sector. Harmer also reflects on CLIA’s first-ever overseas showcase, which comprised business sessions, agent speed dating and ship visits with six operators, before casting his eye to the year ahead as CLIA prepares for the 2025 Cruise Week in September and the CLIA Winter Ball in December.
Aug 4, 2025 · 21 min
How is AI impacting travel marketing?
As AI becomes more prevalent, companies are racing to understand how it can give them a strategic advantage over their competitors, but what ethical quandaries does it raise for marketers? In the third and final instalment of our interview series with Force24 CEO Adam Oldfield, we cast our gaze to the ever-evolving AI landscape, predicting how it will influence the ways cruise lines and travel agents communicate with consumers. We’re also joined by Cruise Trade News’ head of digital Richard Seal who examines how AI and automation can streamline the role of a marketer, giving them more time to focus on the work that really matters.
Jul 28, 2025 · 22 min
How to Find Your Next New-To-River Customer
It’s been four months since Michelle Daniels was unveiled as VIVA Cruises’ new UK country manager, a role that came with clear remit: to grow the river line’s market share in the market from 3% to 10%. Daniels, who has previously held roles with A-Rosa River Cruises as sales director and Light Blue travel as commercial director, wasted no time in spearheading VIVA’s expansion. Fuelled by positive engagement at the CLIA RiverView Conference in Budapest in March, the launch of VIVA Enjoy on the Rhine and plans to launch a new ship on the Seine next year, Daniels is enthused by the trade’s reaction. Daniels sits down with Cruise Corner host Jack Carter to explore how the trade will help the line achieve its ambitious growth targets while examining how unexpected demographic shifts are opening up a new line of business for the sector.
Jul 22, 2025 · 26 min
How can I grow my customer database?
Welcome to part two of our interview with Force24 CEO and founder Adam Oldfield. Last time around Adam introduced us to the concept of personalisation, revealing how travel agents can use it to amplify their email marketing. But what does genuine personalisation actually look like and how should it evolve as customers get closer to the booking page? Download the next instalment of this mini-series to find out.
Jul 15, 2025 · 29 min
Can cruise break free from misconceptions?
What does Freddie Mercury and the cruise industry have in common? Well, if you attended this year's CLIA Conference, you'd know the answer. It’s not unusual for a celebrity to make an appearance at a cruise event. But when that celebrity passed away in 1991, heads are bound to turn. Enter Jonny Peat, senior commercial manager – cruise at The Advantage Travel Partnership, who dazzled attendees when he arrived at Southampton’s Guildhall dressed in Freddie’s iconic outfit from the I Want to Break Free music video. Now, Peat joins the Cruise Corner podcast to discuss the story behind the stockings, as well as the consortium’s strong start to 2025 and its upcoming cruise conference onboard Sky Princess this October.
Jul 8, 2025 · 25 min
What is personalisation and how can it boost my cruise sales?
Take a look at your personal email inbox. How many of the emails you received today are from brands you have a genuine interest in and how many have you actually opened and engaged with? If the answer is ‘hardly any’ then you’re not alone. Our inboxes have become congested with brand emails selling everything from Netflix subscriptions to holiday packages, creating a headache for marketers who are trying to reach their audience with something they may actually want to engage with, like a discounted cruise to the Caribbean, for example. Helping cruise lines and agents cut through the noise is marketing automation platform Force24. CEO and founder Adam Oldfield and Cruise Trade News’ head of digital Richard Seal join the podcast to explain why harnessing personalisation can make your email marketing stand out from the crowd #ad #spon
Jul 1, 2025 · 20 min
Is luxury cruising about to change forever? Regent Seven Seas Cruises believes so
From Aston Martin to Faberge, Regent Seven Seas Cruises has turned to the power of partnerships to entice land-based luxury travellers to the world of cruising. Will Payne (editor, Cruise Trade News) is joined by the ultra-luxury line's senior vice president of international and consumer sales, Steve Odell, and vice president of UK and Ireland sales, Paul Beale, to see whether this has helped broaden the line’s customer base and to get the latest on its newest cruise ship, Seven Seas Prestige. The trio also chat about their careers to date to offer insight into how to grow a career in cruise, and find out if Paul got to drive away with the Aston Martin he so proudly displayed at the 2025 CLIA Conference...
Jun 24, 2025 · 10 min
Is this a terrible idea?
We may know an awful lot about cruise, but podcast hosting? Not so much. That’s not going to stop us though! Join hosts Jack Carter (group editor, Cruise Trade News & World of Cruising) and Will Payne (editor, Cruise Trade News) as they share a taste of what’s to come in series one of our brand-new podcast Cruise Corner. Jack and Will also cast their eyes over the cruise news that’s caught their attention over the last couple of weeks and look ahead to the exciting run of guest interviews in the Cruise Corner podcast pipeline.
Jun 19, 2025 · 52 sec
Welcome to Cruise Corner
Hosts Will Payne and Jack Carter reveal what's to come from the Cruise Corner podcast and how agents and industry professionals can utilise Cruise Trade News and World of Cruising to boost their cruise business