Cruise Corner

The team behind the Cruise Corner Podcast sit down to reflect on their standout moments from 2025 and share what’s on the horizon for 2026. Co-hosts Will Payne and Jack Carter also welcome new host Rashmi Narayan, who offers a sneak peek at her first episodes, coming soon. The trio are joined by Cruise Corner producer Shelby Woods, who provides a behind-the-scenes perspective and shares practical...

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 n...

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...

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,...

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...

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...

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 custo...

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 leade...

"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 so...

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 exped...

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 sect...

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 c...

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 trave...

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...

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...

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...

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 mark...

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 broa...

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 the...

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