Travel Agent Magazine. July 2, 2007
Silversea Details New Ship: Reveals Marketing Plans

Ruthanne Terrero
 
ABOARD THE SILVER WHISPER—Silversea says it will need the assistance of travel agents more than ever now that
it plans to accept delivery of a new ship in November 2009 and has an option for another to follow. And while the news was announced to its top-producing travel agents at its annual Sales Gala,

Silversea reports that it will be reaching out to non-producing travel agencies in the future as well, according to David Morris, executive vice president of sales and marketing.

“This is the best of all times to be where you are,” he told the 22 agents in attendance who had sold more than $500,000 on Silversea in 2006. The agents were rewarded with a cruise aboard the Silver Whisper, which sailed from Barcelona to Valencia for the America’s Cup regatta.

While the qualifying level for the Sales Gala increases to $600,000 in 2007, 16 agents have already exceeded the half-million mark this year to date, according to Marilyn Conroy, senior vice president of sales and marketing.
 
Seeking the Novice Cruiser
Conroy says that Silversea is hard at work to attract new-to-cruising guests, seeing strong potential in those consumers who are currently paying upwards of $1,000 a night to stay in luxury boutique hotels. “We are the best positioned to do that out of any company in the market because of our no-assigned- seating policy and because of the [large] size of our suites,” says Conroy, who notes that Silversea’s exotic itineraries, which include a high ratio of overnights in ports, add to its attraction for new cruisers, as does its international mix of passengers on board. Indeed, Silversea, which is owned by the LeFebvre family of Rome, currently draws 65 percent of its FIT revenue from the U.S. and U.K. markets, yet it plans to expand into more international markets, such as Continental Europe, Asia/Pacific and Mexico/South America, where it has stepped up its sales efforts, according to Amerigo Perasso, the luxury cruise line’s president. Perasso, who was attending his first Sales Gala as the cruise line’s president, says that Silversea is “striving more than ever to be the first in the luxury segment. Our objective is to enhance our brand awareness; we believe we can [use] further leverage on this.”

In addition to the new ship (details below), Perasso says that the line’s Silver Wind and Silver Cloud will undergo brief refittings next year.
 
Agent Reaction
One top producer, Mary Jean Tully, chairman and CEO of The Cruise Professionals, says that Silversea has always been a trendsetter in the luxury marketplace. “Small ships, but not too small; sophisticated, yet not stuffy...On Silversea, you immediately feel like you belong when you’re onboard. I’m excited about the new ship as I believe the luxury market is a growing one,” says Tully. “I love that there will be many more Silver Suites as I think they are one of the best suite configurations in the market today. The improvements for the fitness center and the dining
options sound suited for the times.”
 
A Glimpse at Silversea’s New Ship
Name: TBD
Delivery: November 2009
Shipbuilder: Fincantieri
Size: 540 berths, all but 12 will have balconies.
Style: The silhouette style of the new ship will be similar to that of the Silver Shadow and Silver Whisper
Luxury Add-ons: There will be more of the quick-to-sell-out Silver Suites and more Verandah Suites
Dining/Drinking: Annabel’s restaurant will be similar to the sophisticated private London supper club of the same name. A lobby bar will have a similar feel to that found at the Hotel Metropole in Monte-Carlo
Spa Operator: May or may not be Steiner, which manages spas on Silversea’s current fleet




  Back         Top of Page