Tag Archives: Nile cruise

Cruise holiday searches see 66% upsurge, finds study

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Cruise holiday searches see 66% upsurge, finds study

By Travolution
By Travolution
Online searches for cruise holidays in August soared by 66% over levels in May, new research reveals.

Consumers made a total of 2.5 million searches on Google UK for cruises in August, compared to 1.5 million in May.

Cruises to specific destinations made up 12% (289,890) of overall queries.

Independent cruise agent Iglucruise.com was the most visible site for destination-specific queries, attaining a 45% share of visibility in the organic listings, through ranking for 419 keywords. Thomascook.com took second place with 44%.

Vivavoyage.co.uk was the most visible advertiser in the paid listings, achieving a 51% share of voice. Virginholidayscruises.co.uk followed with 37%.

For cruise-related searches overall, Iglucruise.com was also the most visible site in natural search, capturing a 62% share of visibility. In paid listings, cruisecritic.co.uk dominated with 50%.

The cruise sector report by digital marketing agency Greenlight found queries for tourist excursions on the River Thames saw the biggest increase compared to the Caribbean, Mediterranean and the Nile.

Queries for cruises on the Thames totalled 9,900, with searches rising 71% on May’s level, compared to 42% for the Nile and 37% for both the Caribbean and Mediterranean.

At 19,200, cumulative searches for cruises to the Caribbean accounted for the majority of destination-related queries (7%), with the term ‘caribbean cruises’ being the most popular.

The Mediterranean followed at 17,500 (6%), with the terms ‘mediterranean cruise’, and ‘med cruises’ featuring prominently.

In third place was the Nile. Collectively, ‘nile cruise’ and ‘nile cruises’ pulled in 16,500 queries.

– See more at: http://www.travolution.com/articles/2013/10/16/7182/cruise-holiday-searches-see-66-upsurge-finds-study.html#sthash.x3PfBFla.dpuf

River cruise sustainability guide launched

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River cruise sustainability guide launched

A guide offering best practices to river cruise operators on how to operate with as little environmental impact as possible has been developed by the Travel Foundation.

The ‘Environmental Sustainability for River Cruising’ is designed to support the river cruise tourism industry in working towards a sustainable future by identifying ways to reduce water and energy use, and waste generation on river cruise ships.

The best practices offered in the guide come from audits done on ships in Egypt, along the Nile, and in Europe, along the Danube, Rhine, and Rhône rivers.

Twelve Uniworld Boutique River Cruise Collection ships were audited. The recommendations made from the findings were used to form the basis of the guide, which provides training material for the river cruise industry at large in managing their own environmental performance.

The guidance will mark a breakthrough in reducing the environmental impact of river cruising tourism worldwide, charity the Travel Foundation claims.

Uniworld president Guy Young said: “With the growth of the river cruise sector, it is essential that we all do our part to ensure a healthy and sustainable future for our waterways, which is why we are so proud to be part of such an important first-of-its-kind project in the river cruise sector.

“All river cruise companies should seek to better understand and adopt environmental performance measures in an effort to prevent serious environmental impact in the destinations where we travel and operate.

“To this end, we hope this Environmental Sustainability for River Cruising guide will provide them with best practice examples, tools, and sources of further information, as well as a self-assessment checklist in their own efforts of continuous improvements towards a more sustainable future.”

Salli Felton, acting chief executive of the Travel Foundation, added: “It’s important that the river cruising sector addresses the environmental impact of its day-to-day operation, so that it can grow sustainably.

“We’ve broken the guide down into small manageable chunks so that companies can take a step-by-step approach to minimising the negative effect they may be having on the environment.”

Uniworld Boutique River Cruises are sold through Titan Travel in the UK.

What about the ships on the Nile?

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What about the ships on the Nile?

By Michelle Baran
InsightEgypt’s current political crisis cannot be good for tourism, but the fact that it is taking place during the hot summer months means that the escalation in violence will affect fewer Nile sailings, as many river cruise lines don’t offer Egypt departures during the summer.

Uniworld Boutique River Cruise Collection, one of the only U.S. river cruise lines that owns and operates its own ship on the Nile, the 82-passenger River Tosca, does not offer Tosca sailings during July and August, and thus has not yet had to cancel any departures due to the unrest.

Viking River Cruises also puts its Nile departures on hold during the summer, with its last chartered Nile cruise having taken place on April 30, and the next one slated to depart on Sept. 3. The company has not yet said how it plans to handle the remainder of its 2013 departures.MichelleBaran

Neither AmaWaterways nor Scenic Cruises offer Egypt sailings, and Tauck’s next Egypt itinerary that includes the Nile doesn’t head out until October.

Avalon Waterways, one of the few river cruise operators that did have scheduled departures on the Nile in July and August, has canceled all its departures on the 148-passenger Mayfair (a ship built by Cairo-based Mayfair Cruises in 2010) through August, “given the current unstable situation in Cairo,” according to the Globus Family of Brands, Avalon’s parent company.

“We are working closely with our operations team in Egypt to monitor the situation, including assessment of cruises and tours beyond August,” Globus said in a statement. “We will make any adjustments or cancellations necessary to ensure the safety and well-being of our customers.”

Affected Avalon passengers have the choice of either canceling with no penalty and receiving a full cash refund or rebooking on any Globus vacation, applying the full amount of their original Egypt booking.