No one really cares what a ship looks like

Skift took news about NCL's massive dry-dock plans for its fleet to insult the cruise company's look and appeal: "Norwegian Cruise Line’s Ambitions Collide With Its Ugly Ships." Calling ships ugly is certainly an attention getter, but misses the larger point. No one really cares about how a ship looks.

While some of the newer mega-ships have great aesthetic appeal and classic naval sight lines, most are bulky floating resorts. Ever since Royal Caribbean's first Sovereign ship the industry has trended toward biggness and bulk and didn't care how the ships compared to the old classics. And how have passengers reacted? By booking the bigger and newer ships with the rock walls, huge dining spaces and tons of cabins with balconies. If someone wanted classic elegance, there were choices, but the majority spoke with their dollars.

Now a big part of NCL's improvements is not about the look of the ship, but more about the cleanliness and inside. That will always remain important. Even customers seeking value want to feel their ship is in good shape.

NCL's ambitions are correct. Invest in new and big and don't worry about what the ship experts think. They have other brands to cater to those ship enthusiasts. Their goal should be to get as many people on board as possible and make sure they have a good time.

Cruise Marketing: an age and vacation issue, not technology one

Skift posted an interesting article on the cruise industry's marketing issues. Their theory:

No cruise company has yet to develop an effective online booking and marketing platform for consumers. For now, they need travel agents to act as their de facto North American marketing and booking force.

We disagree slightly with their belief. The cruise industry's slow shift to self-booking is more of a demographic issue than technology.

While no cruise line or cruise seller has a great online experience (compared to other online and travel retailers), all the major companies and sites have perfectly effective self-booking paths. The huge portion of cruise bookings going through travel agents is due to who is booking those trips and what they want. Even with good marketing, cruises still cater to an older demographic. The older you are, the less likely you are to embrace the newest apps, newest booking methods, etc. Also it is harder to change habits. Calling your agent is that easy. Plus good agents still have faster comparison shopping, often have access to the harder to find deals and can guide you through the a la carte choices needed beyond room, dates and price.

By comparison buying an airline ticket or hotel room is much simpler. The various pricing options are less opaque. Paying extra for a window or aisle, or suite in a hotel, is easier to comprehend than the various cruise categories on a the larger ships. Until cruise packages are made simpler, there is value in third party assistance.

Eventually cruise booking will shift. The users will demand it and the margins will lead the cruise companies away from agents. But until people demand a better alternative, agents will be selling cruises for a long time.

Royal Caribbean leading way on sexual assault safety; is it enough?

Royal Caribbean earned the first-ever best practices certification from the Rape, Abuse, Incest National Network (RAINN). They are the only cruise line to go this far in ensuring safe and appropriate responses to sexual assaults at sea. The company deserves commendation for their progressive stance on the issue. However, is certification enough? Can Royal Caribbean and other cruise lines do more to prevent the crimes and keep their passengers safe?

According to Skift, the RAINN certification involves 11 key areas. Some focus on prevention and training, while others deal with post-assault victim support. Even prior to the certification, Royal Caribbean reported better sexual assault statistics than other cruise lines. But there are two areas where all cruise lines seem exposed. The first is alcohol consumption. Alcohol is a significant factor in many cruise-related injuries and crimes. Even with stricter policies and better awareness from servers and bartenders, there will be plenty of men and women impaired onboard. Some of these people will inevitably be involved in sexual assaults.

The other factor overlooked, but that has been a hot button on Cruise Law News, is screening and punishing crew. Many of the assaults are crew on passenger. Training is obviously important with this as is enhanced security and key access. But the background screening can be an issue. The criminal record systems in some of the countries from which the crews are hired are not always as thorough as in they are in the United States. Plenty of offenders have and will continue to slip through the cracks until better hiring practices are in place. If the cruise lines really want to address sexual assault, it will need to improve their hiring background checks.

Good news, bad news for Florida's cruise growth

Tourism is booming in Florida and cruising is leading the way. That's great for the cruise companies, the state and cruise fans. The only question is can the infrastructure keep up with demand? As Skift reports, even now there are many long waits boarding cruises out of Miami. As more ships and bigger ships start sailing from Florida's most popular cruise port, things will only get worse.

Fortunately Florida understands tourism. New cruise terminals have opened in Canaveral and Everglades. Miami will also improve embarkation needs. Tampa is turning their cruise area into a hospitality and entertainment complex.

While the current ports continue to grow, Florida leaders should be asking themselves what other cities can support the cruise boom. Jacksonville's cruise activity has not reached its prerecession peak. It could certainly support more activity. Palm Beach's future dredging could open up more cruise access and has good air access. But wherever the growth goes, the cruise companies should feel good that the state is committed to its growth.

SilverSea first to sail to new Alaska port

After years of all the same ships seemingly sailing to all the same ports, there is a new Alaskan port this summer. SilverSea will stop twice this summer in the small Alaskan town of Yakutat. There is no cruise dock, so approximately 120 guests will tender to town to get a slice of Alaskan life experience. There won't be the usual Alaska excursions because the town is not ready for them. This is the first time they've allowed any modern cruise ship to visit. Instead the passengers will get to see some local performers, tour a fish processing plant or see some local wildlife.

Yakutat took these baby steps with SilverSea after avoiding cruise lines for decades. Now the changing economy and the need for economic diversity and tourism dollars has the town open to the idea of cruise passengers. In addition to the two stops this summer, there are also two planned for 2016. If those prove popular and profitable, you can expect more stops in the future, bigger ships and likely a full cruise dock.

Cruise passengers often get a bad reputation with tourism boards. The stereotype is that they are boorish, don't spend enough, boom into town and then leave. We know that is not true and the people of Yakutat will find that out this summer. This is the start of growth in their city and the chance for SilverSea to offer an exclusive destination.