Skift Take
Quietly, Goldstein has helped oversee the global integration of cruise industry trade associations into one united entity. That re-organization will come in handy during the industry's expansion into emerging markets.
While it lacks in scale to Carnival Corp., which operates about half of the cruise ships in the world, Royal Caribbean Cruises has staked out a strong second position in the industry.
Royal Caribbean Cruises president and CEO Adam Goldstein told Skift that the nascent Chinese cruise market is vital to the company's fortunes, but shouldn't become a focus at the expense of North American cruisers, who represent the greatest source of existing demand for cruises.
Royal Caribbean Cruises' Royal Caribbean International, Azamara Club Cruises, Celebrity Cruises, and SkySea joint-venture in China have been some of the most eager brands to break into the Chinese cruise market.
Goldstein also serves as chairman of Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), the cruise industry's global trade organization. CLIA experienced controversy early this year when former U.S. Coast Guard rear admiral Thomas Ostebo, who it had tapped to lead the organization as CEO, stepped down after two weeks on the job.
Skift spoke to Goldstein last week aboard Royal Caribbean International's newest vessel, Anthem of the Seas.
Skift: So who exactly are these new Chinese cruisers? What do they want from their experiences?
Goldstein: There is a strata of Chinese traveler who has time, so older, wealthier Chinese who are absolutely scouring the earth for every interesting travel possibility. Chinese are clearly, for example, amongst the leaders in adventure travel right now, but in the volumes with which we deal, our focus right now is developing the Chinese coastal offerings out of Tianjin, Shanghai, Xiamen, Hong Kong where there's significant volumes of potential cruisers and then hopefully over time that will cascade out to Singapore, to Alaska, to the Med and eventually to North America, to the U.S. and to the Caribbean.
Skift: What about the international Chinese traveler overall?
Goldstein: In China, during Golden Week and Chinese New Year, there's more
