“It’s been exceptional – the best start to a year we’ve ever had,” owner of Reading-based The Sovereign Cruise Club, Stefan Shillito, told TTG.
“We have had a great start with Seabourn and Silversea in traditional destinations, such as the Mediterranean and the Caribbean, as well as expedition cruises and Asia itineraries.”
Panache Cruises founder and managing director James Cole said January 2023 would likely be the agency’s biggest-ever booking month since its inception.
It follows the business’s appointment of Anna Perrott as head of supplier relations, swelling Panache’s workforce to 36, which compares with just 13 at the start of 2022.
Cole said there was a buzz around the Chorley-based firm’s offices, with bookings for the Far East and India beginning to come back as Asia rebounds from the pandemic.
“People are putting holiday plans right at the top of their priority lists,” added Cole. “A lot of our customers have already booked their 2023 cruises, and are now looking at 2024.”
Just this week, Royal Caribbean Group said strong demand across all of its brands had resulted in the group recording the seven biggest booking weeks in its history since its last earnings update in November, cementing this year’s wave period as its best ever.
This, on Wednesday (8 February), led to credit rating firm S&P Global revising up the group’s longer-term financial outlook from "negative" to "stable".
