Skift Take
Whether on sea or land, travelers are seeking more intimate, personalized experiences and the brands that align themselves most closely with that cause will be able to attract customers across age ranges and regions.
Azamara Club Cruises CEO Larry Pimentel wants to prove that ocean cruises can be just as immersive and interactive as the increasingly popular river cruises.
The Azamara brand was announced in 2007 and has been profitable since its first full year of operation in 2011. The two-ship operation is small by industry standards, holding 686 guests per ship, but is seeking to differentiate itself with culturally immersive programming, similar to river cruising, in destinations more often frequented by large ocean liners.
Although its branded AzAmazing Evenings are included in seven-plus day journeys, the majority of its culturally-influenced programmings like Land Discovery, Nights and Cool Places, and Insider Access are a paid product on top of the sail cost. A factor that makes it more than 90 percent participation rate high.
“The whole nature of this product is that the ship is really a conveyance and we literary explore the world’s best experiences by dealing with participative travel. The notion of participative travel is ‘I did,’ rather than ‘I saw,’ and it’s really functional participation,” Pimentel recently said in an interview with Skift.
An edited version of the interview, in which Pimentel discusses cruising trends and the opportunities for meeting guests' demand for local, culturally significant experiences, is below:
Skift: You explain Azamara’s cruise experience like a TED experience, with more interaction and participation. What’s the demographic of your primary customers? Do you have trouble attracti
