Royal Caribbean vice president of EMEA Ben Bouldin believes that there will be a shift in the cruise brand’s marketing and promotional strategies following the coronavirus pandemic.

Speaking at the cruise line’s first ‘Cafe Royal’ trade webinar, he said: “I think the way in which we promote cruises might change.

“Last year, we had been very promotional and price-led at times, but this had been a very competitive market place with more guests wanting to travel.

“The facts are that now there are fewer people wanting to travel and we have more capacity than we did a year ago. There are also a few scenarios that could impact us, including whether the CDC will allow us to run with the same capacity of guests.

“There will also be significant costs the cruise industry will have to take on as a result of measures and protocols that we sign up to.

“Now what we are trying to do is to ensure pricing stays competitive. We don’t want to undermine people who have already booked. There will be a shift in the tone of our marketing and promotional materials.”

The Royal Caribbean boss also stressed how the cruise line will continue to work closely with travel trade, who will be a “critical part” of the line’s process and success.

He said: “Royal Caribbean has had a really strong relationship with travel trade as long as it has been in business and since I started the company seven years ago, we’ve enjoyed a close relationship. Our travel partners are a critical part of our process and our success.

“That won’t change in the future and I’m going to need you guys even more to rebuild our business. It will be a new go-forward model, but I can assure you there will no shortage of asks and things we will support you with.”

He added: “We’re trying to do as much as we can to support our travel trade partners at this time.

“Our Cruise with Confidence policy has been well-received, our incentivisation of guests to move to new bookings – all of these things have been done to protect travel agents. I’ll need you as much as tomorrow as I do today. So thank you for your support.”

Royal Caribbean brands have launched a new online hub, RCL Cares, to support UK and Ireland trade partners in the midst of the global coronavirus pandemic. Visit rclcares.co.uk for more information.