Royal Caribbean-owned cruise agency Cruise1st has been put up for sale and is understood to have attracted at least three potential trade buyers.
It is known that at least one of the cruise specialist agencies interested in buying the business has submitted an offer for Cruise1st, which is a trading division of Sunshine Cruise Holidays and employs more than 100 staff in the UK, Australia and Singapore.
In a statement, Manchester-based Cruise1st said it was “exploring the possibility” of an external sale and also strongly considering a management buyout.
Royal Caribbean declined to comment.
A source told Travel Weekly that a deal could be struck within the next couple of weeks.
Dan Townsley, chief executive of Cruise1st, said he was eager to weigh up options for the business, adding: “We’re in a position to explore our options and make the right choice for the business that will support our ambitious growth plans.”
The agency launched in 2000 and was acquired by Island Cruises three years later. Following the merger of First Choice and Tui UK, Cruise1st became wholly owned by Royal Caribbean Cruises in 2008.
In the past four years the agency’s booking numbers are claimed to have grown by 83%, and Townsley said the business had “aggressive expansion plans”.
The cruise sector has witnessed several acquisitions in recent years, including Iglu Cruise’s purchase of Planet Cruise in 2013 and dnata taking a stake in Imagine Cruising last month.
Private equity firms have also shown interest in cruise businesses, with both Cruise.co.uk and Iglu Cruise receiving backing.
The latter received further investment last week in a deal, believed to be worth £60 million, with private equity backer LDC. This prompted Iglu founder Richard Downs to say he was looking at acquisitions.
If the sudden absence of pillow chocolates, umbrella drinks and endless horizons leaves you hollow, you might have Post-Cruise Funk (PCF), an affliction that’s affected nearly 100 percent of cruisers, according to a well-cited study I just invented.
If a picture is worth 1,000 words, a few of those words must be therapeutic. “I found if I take lots of fun photos while on the cruise, I can stave off some of the depression by reviewing and organizing them into a book,” writes member Tudy. She and her husband periodically host “cruise evenings,” during which they peruse photos, share stories and laugh. Check out our tips for taking better onboard photos.
As with photos, reframing the at-sea narrative — remember that woman with the Royal Caribbean tattoo? — can be like reliving the experience. When you reminisce by way of review, you’re doing thousands of readers a service through your insights, tips and tricks. Heal yourself by writing a cruise review.
If you’re pining over the loss of cruise food — the availability, the variety, the fanfare — there are antidotes. Drool over epicurean content in Cruise Critic’s cruise food section , recreate at-sea meals with readers’ favorite recipes, or chew on some useful member advice in the Cruise Foodies forum. For example, member MissMap keeps all the nighttime pillow chocolates from her cruise and deposits them in a desk drawer at work: “So if I’m having a stressful day at work,” she writes, “I savor one and take a moment to remember the latest great cruise vacation.” Or borrow cruising’s culinary nomenclature, like member Econom405, who admits to referring to the first post-cruise family dinner she cooks as the “chef’s regional specialty.”
For many passengers, that first slurp of sailaway daiquiri marks the official start to a cruise. If you drink to remember, there might be nothing easier than recreating your favorite cruise cocktail at home.
Chronic PCF sufferers argue there is but one cure to the vicious cycle: the pre-emptive booking. The recommended approach is to plop down on your next cruise while onboard. Many lines offer attractive perks — discounts, reduced deposits, onboard credit — for doing so. The fine print is key here. If you’re serious about this treatment, peruse our in-depth piece on booking onboard.
Until sandals touch lido deck, talking about a cruise is what makes it real. Shameless ship’s horn tooting aside, there is no better place to chat with fellow passengers about upcoming itineraries than a Cruise Critic Roll Call. You can swap tips, set up pre-cruise or onboard events or book a group tour if you think your virtual relationships can make the transition to the real world. Meet your fellow passengers here.
No looming embarkation to boost morale? There are thousands of Cruise Critic members enduring the same pain. Their recourse: the virtual cruise experience. Check out the “live from…” logs endlessly spawned on the Cruise Critic message boards. Here’s but oneprime example, which has been read by thousands of PCF sufferers. Cruise Critic editors also regularly report from wherever cruise ships travel, posting photo-heavy vignettes on the Lido Deck Blog and hosting weekly live chats.
Take enough cruises, and you’ll start to discover the secrets the cruise lines don’t tell you. Use your developing expertise to help a friend or family member plan his next cruise. While helping new cruisers is rewarding in and of itself, you just might find a bathrobe, luggage tag and chocolate melting cake mix gift wrapped with your name on it.
There’s no denying it: Most cruisers prefer the company of towel animals to their significant others. Ogle this menagerie of towel creatures, or get your hands linty by learning the time-honored craft.
The next best thing to being there: Install a porthole in your bedroom, and paint the glass with a seascape, like reader Richard S. Alternatively, Member Dodget1964 brings home the breakfast room service menus and hangs them on the bedroom door. “I keep thinking the room service attendant will show up,” she writes. Better still, pass on your love of cruising to your child by filling his nursery with cruise ship accouterments.
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