VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, Jun 27 (MARKET WIRE) --
Expedia(R) CruiseShipCenters(R) achieved a milestone by booking a record
$13.5 Million in cruises in a single day. The Company's annual Princess
Cruises One-Day-Sale, which took place on June 14, surpassed last year's
record breaking sale by $4.4 million, a 40% increase, making it a
significant accomplishment for the nation's leading cruise specialists.
"The phenomenal growth at Expedia CruiseShipCenters is a clear indication
that the cruising industry continues to grow. With 80 new ships scheduled
in the next 10 years, and the increase in customer satisfaction, the
forecast of the industry is robust," says Michael Drever, President and
CEO of Expedia CruiseShipCenters. "The demand is at its highest in our 20
year history. With over 1900 trained Cruise Consultants and access to
exclusive value priced product, our customers have the benefit of
receiving outstanding customer service."
Expedia CruiseShipCenters launched the One-Day-Sale event in 2005, as a
unique promotion to showcase that the world of cruising extends far
beyond the Caribbean to nearly every continent, and to highlight the
benefit of booking early with a fully-refundable deposit of only 100
dollars. This year's sale included worldwide departures up to Spring 2010
because Expedia CruiseShipCenters secures group inventory in advance,
allowing agents across the country to take advantage of multiple benefits
such as shipboard credits, group discounts and reduced deposit.
"It was a pleasure to see so many of our Princess Captain's Circle(R)
members take advantage of the added exclusive bonus offers. These offers
made it even more valuable to book on the 14th this year," says Geraldine
Ree, Senior Vice President Sales and Marketing Expedia CruiseShipCenters.
For weeks prior to the event, Consultants participated in considerable
training with a focus on offering their clients the best product and
service possible. Accolades are due to more than 106 Centers and over
1900 Cruise Consultants who took part in the incredible feat to make it a
record breaking achievement.
"An achievement like this takes an incredible amount of team effort. From
the individual Cruise Consultants who took advantage of our Princess
Academy training to the national marketing team who worked with us to
build and promote this sale," says Jan Swartz, Senior Vice President and
Customer Service for Princess Cruises and Cunard. "It is a real statement
of how well Expedia CruiseShipCenters understands its customers. We would
like to thank everyone at Expedia CruiseShipCenters who contributed to
this fantastic growth and look forward to breaking records next year."
About Expedia CruiseShipCenters
Established in 1987, Expedia CruiseShipCenters is one of North America's
leading cruise vacation specialists. The company delivers outstanding
customer service and value through its network of more than 106 retail
locations, a team of over 1,900 professionally-trained Cruise
Consultants, and a searchable online database of more than 10,000 cruise
vacations. In 2006 and 2007, the company was the winner of the Canadian
Franchise Association's Award of Excellence which recognizes the top
franchise system in the country. For more information, please visit
www.cruiseshipcenters.com.
Contacts:
Expedia CruiseShipCenters
Armita Seyedalikhani
1-877-398-9090
Email: media@cruiseshipcenters.com
Website: www.cruiseshipcenters.com
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