Speaking to TTG, the line’s vice-president Eithne Williamson said: "We’ve been highlighting to agents certain aspects of our product they can use to demonstrate the cost efficiency of a cruise."

Williamson said changing consumer perceptions of what cruise holidays offer was also key.

"We want people to see Princess as the perfect venue for attending popular festivals, or other bucket-list events, at a price that is more cost-effective than making independent travel arrangements," she added.

The refocus comes off the back of an "extremely strong" wave period for Princess Cruises, during which the line outperformed its 2019 peak sales performance.

"We’re so appreciative of the incredible support we’ve had from agents in helping us get off to the best possible start to the year," said Williamson.

Southampton departures have proven particularly popular for the line in 2023, as well as Japan and Australia cruises. In 2024, Sun Princess will join the line’s fleet and spend its inaugural season in the Mediterranean.

"This will create even more opportunities for the trade to sell and entice new-to-cruise clients to experience a holiday at sea for the first time, on a next-generation ship," said Williamson, who stressed agents would be key to the new vessel’s success.

"Getting agents onboard is vital to us – it means they can experience the Princess product first-hand and ultimately help sell more Princess cruises to their customers," Williamson continued.

Princess has 22 dates planned for ship visits in 2023, during which it will host more than 1,100 agents from across the UK, Ireland and Europe.

In a bid to enhance agents’ knowledge, the line will also add new training modules and trade incentives to its online education platform.