On board Royal Caribbean's Quantum of the Seas, Two70 is a meeting and entertainment space rolled into one, offering panoramic views through its floor-to-ceiling windows.
With Singapore set to enter Phase 3 of its Covid-19 reopening plan on 28 December, social gatherings are set to increase from five to eight, and with it, an opportunity for "cruises to be an alternative as a MICE destination," says Steven Ler, executive director, head of travel at UOB Travel Planners.
Speaking at a panel with fellow local travel agents at the CruiseWorld Asia webinar on 15 December, Ler, who's also the president of NATAS, singled one key factor for planners to look into: creative programming.
"This is an opportunity for travel agents and meeting planners to work with both cruises to see how they can better [draft] different programmes to suit customer segments," said Ler, referring to the only two cruise lines given the green light to sail in Singapore waters — Genting Cruise Lines, and Royal Caribbean International.
CruiseWorld Asia saw industry leaders discuss the future of travel in Singapore. The session was moderated Northstar Travel Group's Irene Chua and Xinyi Liang-Pholsena.According to Ler, and fellow panelists from New Shan Travel Service and Citystate Travel, "a lot of MICE enquiries" have continued to pour in during this period.
The only red tape is that "MICE policies on board can be a bit more relaxed so this can open up huge sales opportunities," added Chris Tay, assistant general manager, New Shan Travel Service. M&C Asia understands that the agency is still in talks with a few companies, and are looking to "work closely with cruise liners to see how we can conduct meetings on board safely and within regulations".
Ler also gave the example of how his Singapore client base started asking for staycations as an alternative to meetings, which could become a possible model for cruise lines as well.
"There’s [still] room for smaller meeting rooms onboard, [such as land staycations where our customers] stay in respective rooms before coming out for a five-person meeting. [Cruises] provide an even more seamless environment for that to happen."
Koh Chong Wee, general manager, Citystate Cruises, Citystate Travel also shared two tips for reopening this sector.
"You’ve to manage expectations of these MICE groups, [reminding them of the] social distancing measures that continue to be in place...to strike a balance so customers are confident to go on board."