Cruise & Ferry Itinerary Planning 2020

4 4 of the essential role the cruise industry plays in sustaining and growing the economies of the Caribbean islands. The livelihoods of thousands and thousands of locals depend on the business that Carnival ships bring to these destinations, so it’s in everyone’s best interests to work together.” Consequently, Carnival hosts meetings with its destination partners and attends events hosted by industry associations like the Florida-Caribbean Association and Cruise Lines Industry Association to build and grow these relationships. “We always make ourselves available for any opportunities to collaborate with our destination partners so we can foster mutual success,” says Savino. “Open and frank communication is essential, so we share both good and bad news, review best practices, and identify any problems and work together to find the most effective solutions. Crucially, we also consider feedback from our guests, officers and crew members because they visit these destinations frequently and often notice important things that we may overlook from our corporate headquarters.” In addition, destination representatives can brief Carnival on any new onshore offerings and initiatives that may interest guests so the itinerary planning team can evaluate how best to capitalise on them. “All of these conversations provide us with a treasure trove of incredibly powerful knowledge and insights that both Carnival and our destination partners can use to improve the onshore experience and itinerary planning,” Savino says. “This ongoing and evolving process leads us to pinpoint new ways to include destinations in our programmes, change the ports we visit, alter the sequence of the ports featured in our itineraries, optimise the number of hours we spend in port, and much more. We apply this process systematically to all the itineraries in our portfolio. “Ultimately, our goal is to improve guest satisfaction and overall financial performance for Carnival and establishing symbiotic relationships with destinations is central to achieving this aim. This approach is going to become even more important as we look at how to effectively cruise in the new operating paradigm.” CFIP PL ANNER PERSPECTI VE Carnival Breeze sailing in Tortola, British Virgin Islands