Coffee break: Akvile Marozaite, CEO, Expedition Cruise Network

In an exclusive interview, Rebecca Barnes chats to Akvile Marozaite, CEO, Expedition Cruise Network about the serious earning potential of selling expedition cruising to your clients

What exactly is the Expedition Cruise Network?

The Expedition Cruise Network is a commercial B2B membership organisation that seeks to connect expedition cruise operators to the travel trade community to promote expedition cruising as an incredible choice for travellers across the world. Our members are made up of 18 global expedition cruise operators – well-known names and small, niche operators – and over 650 travel trade professionals who have all joined  in the last couple of months. Trade members enjoy free access to exclusive content, an expedition cruise operator directory, the most extensive webinar programme in the industry dedicated to expedition cruising, reduced travel agent rates to experience expedition cruising, a centralised digital brochure rack, and more. In the future, members can also expect to be the first ones to hear about in-person events and fam trip opportunities and we continuously look to improve our website to become a one-stop shop for expedition cruising.

How can people get involved?

If you work in travel industry and are keen to learn more about this fascinating way of exploring the world, or to improve your existing knowledge, head to our website www.expeditioncruisenetwork.com/member-signup. After completing a short questionnaire, you’ll become a member and have access to our entire members area. It is free of charge for travel trade professionals.

Why is expedition cruising worth selling both now and in the future?

Firstly, there is a lot of commercial sense to do so: expedition cruising is a niche form of travel and often a high-ticket item. You can typically expect to receive a great commission rate on booking expedition cruises, and with average selling prices starting from £5,000 per person, rising to over £20,000, it means there is some serious earning potential available. There is another reason why I am so passionate about this form of travel– expedition ships often take you to some truly remote and unique destinations and you get to learn about the place, people and wildlife from passionate experts onboard the ship while you are travelling. There is an element of spontaneity and wonder during these voyages – there is no amount of money you can pay to guarantee seeing a wild humpback breaching in front of you, and when it happens, it can often leave a transformative impression which lasts a lifetime. In a world that is rapidly changing due to the climate crisis, experiencing some of the destinations expedition ships travel to and learning first-hand about the challenges our natural world and certain communities are facing, can really inspire you to make changes in your life and become an active advocate of a more sustainable way of living while caring deeply about the impact our choices are having on the wider world. In this sense, expedition cruising can really be, and often is, a force for good.

What are your goals for the coming months?

We will continue with our popular webinar series highlighting various destinations and aspects of expedition cruising. We know that one of the top reasons our trade partners join the network is to enhance their knowledge of expedition cruising, so we will work with our expedition cruise operators to offer more learning opportunities through in person events, ship visits, fam trips, and online learning. We are also continuously exploring ways to enhance our website and add value to our travel trade community, so members can expect some new features on our website too.

What are you most excited about?

It is great to see expedition cruising getting more attention in the trade and consumer media – I think it is such an amazing way to experience the world and more people should know about it. I also love the fact that more and more people are considering expedition cruising to destinations outside of the polar regions – while Antarctica and the Arctic undoubtedly remain popular expedition cruise destinations, there is literally the whole world out there to be explored. Some of our members offer truly unique and exciting itineraries, such as Heritage Expeditions’ Sub-Antarctic islands of New Zealand, Swan Hellenic’s West Coast of Africa, or Lindblad Expeditions’ Baja California programme. In terms of the ECN, it’s been humbling to receive such a positive and enthusiastic welcome from both our expedition operator partners and travel trade professionals. I look forward to working alongside Martin (Johnson, the chairman and co-founder of ECN) and our members to take it to new heights, continue growing the network and adding value to our trade partners and expedition cruise operators alike.

To me, expedition cruising has always been about the destination experience, and there are three places I would absolutely love to experience: Aldabra Atoll in the Indian Ocean, Kimberley Coast in Australia, and the West Coast of Africa. I would go back at the drop of the hat to Mexico’s Baja California anytime, and while I live and have travelled extensively in the UK, Sir David Attenborough’s latest documentary, ‘Wild Isles’ has convinced me that there is more to the British Isles than meets the eye, and I would love to explore the coastal areas of my adopted home. There are many fantastic ships to choose from to experience expedition cruising, but the one I am personally intrigued by, and I hope I will have a chance to experience at some point is Ponant’s hybrid icebreaker Le Commandant Charcot – she is a really unique vessel. Aside being technically equipped to go where few others can, I am impressed with the scientific research that takes place onboard the ship; Ponant regularly invites scientists on board and uses its two dedicated labs for data collection and experiments, thus contributing to our knowledge about natural phenomena and environments the ship travels to. It would be fascinating to see this important work in action. I am also very excited about the future of expedition ships: both Hurtigruten and Ponant have announced the intent to launch zero emissions ships by 2030– that’s 20 years ahead of UN’s zero greenhouse gas emissions goal, putting expedition cruise companies ahead of the rest of the cruise industry in the quest of becoming a more sustainable form of travel.