Royal Caribbean is bolstering its trade support with the launch of its ‘Royal on the Road’ programme

The initiative will see sales representatives from the cruise line travel to high street stores to deliver tailored support to agents with the aims of driving bookings and improving product knowledge.

Royal Caribbean staff will spend a day with agents to give them training and to meet with their clients, and can stay later into the evening to host in-store cruise events and customer showcases. Marketing materials and merchandise will also be provided.

The line said it plans to introduce a virtual reality element to the training to enable agents and customers to immerse themselves onboard Legend of the Seas, the first Icon class ship to sail in Europe, launching this summer.

Royal on the Road kicked off on 16 February in the north of England before heading to the East Midlands and Buckinghamshire.

Over several days, the team met with agencies including Now Let’s Travel, Hays Travel, Broadway Travel, Tui, Virgin Holidays, Co-op Travel and Sunlounger.

Agents interested in booking a visit from the Royal Caribbean team will be able to do so on the line’s Club Royal site shortly.

Royal Caribbean’s vice president and managing director, EMEA, Gerard Nolan said: “Royal on the Road represents our commitment to being present, proactive and fully invested in our trade partnerships.

“When we equip agents with the right knowledge, energy and direct access to our teams, we see stronger results across the board.

“This initiative is about showing up, listening, training and ultimately helping our partners convert more Royal Caribbean bookings.”