Scenic and Emerald Cruises continue to be a popular choice for UK customers looking to explore the iconic rivers of Europe. Group director of sales Joseph Grimley discusses the key selling points for both and how the brands are giving back to their agent partners.

River lines traditionally offer a fantastic range of inclusions. How do Scenic & Emerald Cruises compare?

Both of our brands include flights from the UK, transfers to the ship, all meals with drinks and a range of excursions, plus gratuities both on board and ashore. This includes local guides and coach drivers when on the included excursions.

Scenic go above and beyond this by including a personal butler for every grade of stateroom/suite, providing room service and a mini bar that is fully restocked daily.

Truly all-inclusive means guests will rarely, if ever, have to dip into their wallets to pay for anything. On our Scenic river cruises chauffeurs will also pick guests up from home and take them to the airport in style and comfort.

Is a river cruise a relaxing or busy holiday?

It can be as relaxing or busy as guests choose. Our ships are extremely comfortable and spacious and include lots of public areas to relax, be waited on and watch the world go by the ships glide elegantly along the rivers.

Take a dip in the indoor heated pool on Emerald’s Star Ships or relax on deck with an included cocktail on Scenic. For those wishing to stay active on holiday, Emerald Star Ships all have an activity manager who will run a programme of exercise classes, yoga, pilates, and more, and escort guests on Emerald Active hiking, biking or canoeing excursions.

Scenic Space Ships have electronically assisted bicycles on board for those who want to explore with a little less effort.

How can agents learn more about both brands?

Agents should visit our agent portals ­– www.scenic.co.uk/agent-portal and www.emeraldcruises.co.uk/agent-portal. Here agents will find interactive online training modules (Agent Academy), pre-recorded ‘river-specific’ short webinars and a host of other useful selling tools.

Can you tell us more about your agent incentive programme?

We are delighted to resume our River Rewards and More agent incentive programme, which awards points for every Scenic and Emerald Cruises booking.

Agents can exchange points for some fantastic prizes including vouchers, lifestyle goods, electronics, and so on. Collect enough points and agents can even earn a free river cruise on board Scenic or Emerald Cruises.

When are you resuming your river cruise programme?

We resumed our river cruise sailings on the Douro at the end of July and introduced other rivers throughout August.

For those customers who don’t wish to travel in 2021, I suggest securing their 2022 river cruise sooner rather than later as these are starting to now sell out.