Scenic Group has experienced a significant rise in group bookings through agents, marking an 85% increase.
- The period from January to July 2024 shows impressive growth compared to the previous year.
- This surge is attributed to milestones such as anniversaries and retirements.
- Scenic Group offers exclusive deals to boost late 2024 and early 2025 bookings.
- These developments represent expanding opportunities within the luxury cruise market.
In a remarkable trend, Scenic Group has reported an 85% increase in group bookings from trade between January and July 2024, compared to the same timeframe in the preceding year. Nick Hughes, director of sales, partnerships and strategic growth at Scenic Group, emphasised the encouraging nature of this growth, attributing it to a rise in bookings for significant milestones such as anniversaries and retirements. This growth reflects a broader trend within the luxury cruise market, where larger parties are increasingly opting for high-end travel experiences.
Alongside this surge, Scenic Group has introduced a range of exclusive offers intended to attract further group bookings. These offers aim to incentivise agents to increase their group sales and encourage bookings for late 2024 and early 2025. One of these offers includes a five-night “Christmas Time on the Danube” cruise, departing on 18 December 2024, at a starting price of £1,249 per person, with an additional £50 discount per person for group bookings of five cabins or more. Similarly, a discount of £150 per person is available for the eight-night “Windmills, Tulips, and Belgian Delights” cruise in April, priced at £1,999 per person for group bookings of five cabins or more.
The strategy to offer these discounts is a calculated move to capture a larger share of the non-discretionary spending market, where clients are willing to allocate more funds for a luxury holiday experience. Hughes remarked that such growth offers a significant opportunity for agents, enabling them to tap into higher revenue group bookings and broaden their customer base.
In addition to these commercial strategies, Scenic Group has been reconfiguring its organisational structure to better support its sales efforts. This summer, the company promoted Jonathon Davies to head of sales and unveiled plans to reshape its trade sales team, positing itself for continued success in the evolving cruise industry sustainability.
Scenic Group’s strategic initiatives and market positioning are poised to further enhance its growth trajectory in the luxury cruise sector.
