\"Admittedly, the French cruise market is not experiencing the dazzling growth seen on the world market, but it is nevertheless recording steady and sustained annual growth of around 3 to 4 %\", notes the France Ferries et Croisi\u00e8res (FF&C) association, whose members represent almost 95 % of the cruise market in France. Its spokesman, Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Sauvadet, points out that \"the French market, which is still immature, offers real prospects for development: out of 15 million cruise passengers worldwide, France accounts for only 250,000... In 2012, we expect 600,000!\"<\/p>\n
This outlook is underpinned by a general revival in the image of cruising. Thanks to a series of advertising campaigns, fleet renewal and product diversification, cruising has undergone a facelift! A rejuvenation that affects all customer groups. For example, Pierre Hatterer, director of the incentive and seminar department at MSC Crociere, notes that \"the average age of participants in a business tourism operation is now around thirty, whereas previously it was mainly made up of people in their forties and fifties. Overall, we are seeing a growth in demand: from 6,000 passengers in 2007, we will be increasing to 10,000 in 2008\". Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Sauvadet explains that \"in parallel with the general phenomenon of younger passengers, the adaptability of the boats, the arrival of new on-board activities such as Formula 1 driving simulators, climbing walls, golf practice areas or wave pools for surfing initiation and, of course, the installation of ultra-modern meeting rooms are attracting more and more companies, whatever their size or budget\". These arguments are in addition to all the traditional advantages of cruising: unity of location, no transfers, a different landscape every day, time-saving, controlled freedom, a wide price range comparable to that of hotels, an all-inclusive formula, a wide range of services and, of course, that very special atmosphere which gives passengers the impression of being both out of time and out of space.<\/p>\n
So many reasons for a company to take its troops and customers on board a boat for cruises of varying lengths, depending on the type of operation. At Costa, Europe's leading cruise operator, groups account for 40 % of business, and 10 % of this is for incentive operations. \"Our mini-cruises lasting three to five days are particularly popular for seminars, while our cruises lasting a week or more are in demand for incentives, particularly in the Gulf States and the Caribbean,\" says Marie-Sophie Le Gall, head of the incentive department. She points out that \"Costa organises turnkey holidays, even taking charge of all the technical and logistical aspects. What's more, for groups of 500 guests or more, it is possible to charter a cruise ship and personalise it\".<\/p>\n
The same applies aboard Bleu de France, the ship of the new French cruise operator Croisi\u00e8re de France (CDF), a subsidiary of the Royal Caribbean group. \"With a capacity of 374 cabins, the Bleu de France has been entirely decorated and designed in the French style in order to win over French customers from May 2008. As a result, our cruise is 100 % % French-speaking and offers all-inclusive fares, including drinks and ice cream\", explains Brigitte Tissier, Managing Director of CDF, who continues: \"We have a target of 20,000 passengers for the summer 2008 season, including groups of business tourists. The latter will find on board a spa with a marine bio trail and a lounge with a capacity of 400 people. Compagnie des \u00eeles du Ponant has been promoting the French art of living for several years now, as sales director \u00c9ric Lustman points out: \"Whether it's on board the sailing yacht Le Ponant, the yacht Le Levant or the expedition liner Le Diamant, our positioning is the same: French elegance, comfort and refinement. What's more, all three are human-sized, with 32 to 113 cabins, and fly the French flag.\"<\/p>\n
\u00c9ric Lustman also notes the emergence of a loyalty phenomenon: \"A company that has tested the cruise product generally wants to repeat the experience. But they have to book early enough, which is not usually the case in Latin countries like France! Already, for 2008, we have 118 cruises planned, of which 65 % are chartered\". However, some shipping companies have learned over the years to juggle with last-minute corporate schedules. This is the case of the RCCL group, which owns the shipping lines Celebrity Cruises, Royal Caribbean and Azamara. Bernard Echevarria, its Managing Director, recalls that \"in 2002, we organised the biggest incentive operation in the cruise industry: 12,000 plumbers invited by Brossette! Seven rotations were organised on board the Galaxy Celebrity for seven-day cruises in the Caribbean. The latter regularly receives requests for incentive operations from 40 to 350 passengers, i.e. around twenty groups per year, and responds to charter requests for larger units. \"Overall, we see two trends: below 700 passengers, the itinerary has to be interesting and original. Beyond that, the boat becomes a destination in its own right. This is particularly the case with Royal Caribbean, whose ships are among the largest in the world. For example, the latest vessel to be launched, the Freedom of the Seas, can accommodate up to 4,370 passengers,\" explains Bernard Echevarria. This gigantic size makes it possible to create private and public spaces that are much larger than those on a conventional ship. For example, the 112-metre \"royal promenade\" is lined with shops modelled on a Parisian street, including clothing boutiques, bars, restaurants, a theatre, a casino, an ice rink and a 900-seat conference centre.<\/p>\n
On a different note, Cunard's second mastodon of the seas, the Queen Mary 2, \"is particularly well suited to seminars, with everything you need on board to work and relax during a six-night transatlantic crossing from Southampton to New York\", explains R\u00e9my Arca, Cunard's Director for France. From this summer, the Queen Victoria will be added to the fleet. With its haughty appearance, luxurious yet discreet decor, spacious cabins and original infrastructure, it will perpetuate the great British maritime tradition\". An atmosphere particularly appreciated by groups.<\/p>\n
Passengers on Star Clippers yachts, replicas of the old clippers that sailed the seas in the 19th century, are also looking for the elegance and charm of yesteryear. As B\u00e9atrice Frantz-Clavier, Sales Manager for France, points out, \"For total privatisation, our yachts are particularly suited to operations involving 150 to 200 passengers, while partial charters are aimed at groups of 15 to 100 people.\" She adds that \"in 2007-2008, we recorded an overall increase in requests, whatever the itinerary. The old rigging, the beauty of the boat and the closeness to the sea that a sailboat offers are very appealing\".<\/p>\n
It is also the authentic aspect of the Hurtigruten Coastal Express line that attracts companies. \"Since 1893, winter and summer alike, a ship has left Bergen in Norway to transport goods and passengers on a journey that is considered to be one of the most beautiful and original in the world,\" says Fran\u00e7ois Weill, CEO of Hurtigruten SAS. Today, the ships in the fleet, while fulfilling their mission as an economic and social link, offer comfort equivalent to that of a traditional cruise liner, with 34 ports of call along the Norwegian coast to the Russian border, via Lapland, the North Cape and the Lofoten Islands. \"Every year, hundreds of companies organise seminars, business meetings and incentive trips on board. At the moment, most of them are from Scandinavia, because we've only been working with French customers for a year now,\" explains Fran\u00e7ois Weill.<\/p>\n
In addition to the Coastal Express line, Hurtigruten offers exploration cruises in the extreme seas of Greenland, Spitzbergen and Antarctica. Each cruise includes a range of activities: snowmobile or dog-sled safaris, giant crab fishing, killer whale watching, swimming in icy waters, etc. But for Olivier Maurey, CEO of the Lud\u00e9ric group, an event communications agency, \"the boat is first and foremost a means like any other and not an end in itself. It allows us to surprise and put participants in unexpected situations. It's true that cruises have a magical side, and for small groups they can be used to organise exceptional trips, but for large groups you absolutely have to dress them up! On the other hand, it's also a great way to discover a destination.\"<\/p>\n
Less exotic than cruises to Asia or Egypt, but just as well suited to business tourism, river cruises in Europe are also enjoying a certain degree of popularity. The FF&C estimates \"the European market at around 1 million passengers, including 200,000 in France, which is also home to one of the world's leading river cruise companies, CroisiEurope\". This company has 24 boats on all the rivers of Europe and in 2007 welcomed some 184,000 passengers, an increase of almost 4 % compared with 2006. Of these passengers, 67 % were French! For Jacqueline Dalmaz, Director of Athenaeum, agent for Viking River Cruises, \"for the last fifteen years or so, the market has been growing steadily and now extends far beyond Europe's borders. Even if the Rhine and the Danube are part of the classic cruises, we are registering growing demand for cruises to Russia on board the Viking Peterhof and to China on the Yangtze\".<\/p>\n
FF&C members explain this \"growing interest from the business tourism sector in river cruises by the arrival on the market of small capacity vessels, 100 to 250 passengers, very modern and capable of hosting a congress, for a stay of four or five days, at competitive rates\". J\u00e9r\u00f4me Schabanel, Associate Director of Yachts de Paris, has another explanation for this attraction of business groups. \"This phenomenon is part of a return to nature and ecology. And what could be more natural than water? It's a breath of fresh air in the heart of a city. On a boat, passengers disconnect from everyday life and urbanisation. What's more, they discover a different place from a traditional land-based visit, all in a luxurious and refined setting.\"<\/p>\n
The same applies to ferries. Whether across the Channel or in the Mediterranean, the French market is doing well! The sector's good health is due to the general modernisation of the fleets, both high-speed vessels and traditional car ferries. According to the FF&C, high-speed vessels with greater capacity, more power and greater comfort are positioning themselves as real alternatives to air transport. At the same time, new ships are arriving on the market that are increasingly luxurious and offer services similar to those of cruise ships. In particular, these ferries have developed seminar packages, with the possibility, during mini-cruises of two to five days, of scheduling stopovers and stays on land in destinations such as Corsica, Sicily, the Balearics, Ireland or Spain. Brittany Ferries, for example, is focusing its development on the \"cruise crossing\" concept. On board: cinemas, restaurants, cabins, shops, cabarets... \"As soon as they were launched in 2003, our half-day cruises were a huge success: 11,000 passengers! In response to this success, in 2004 we expanded our range with the arrival of the Pont-Aven ferry,\" explains Nicolas Boutaud, Passenger Sales Director for France. \"She operates regular services between Roscoff and Cork in Ireland, Roscoff and Plymouth in the UK, and Plymouth and Santander in Spain. She leaves Roscoff every Tuesday evening, docks in Plymouth on Wednesday morning for a half-day stopover, then heads for Santander on Thursday morning before returning to Roscoff on Friday morning. These cruises can last three or four nights, or a week. The Pont-Aven welcomes an average of 4,000 passengers a year. These include incentive groups, the vast majority of whom opt for mini-cruises to Ireland. Also on the English Channel, but in a different category, SeaFrance, the only French company on the Calais-Dover route, relies on the quality of its fleet and its services, particularly on board the SeaFrance Rodin and the SeaFrance Berlioz, where all meals are prepared on site by French chefs. Meanwhile, in the Mediterranean, SNCM continued in 2007 to win back the market it started in 2006.<\/p>\n
SNCM's objective is to exceed one million passengers and capture half of the maritime market between mainland France and Corsica. Its arguments: comfortable, high-quality ships for the cruise ferries and high-speed performance for the high-speed vessels. Like Brittany Ferries, SNCM has positioned itself in the Mediterranean minicruise market with its flagship, the Napol\u00e9on-Bonaparte. As for Grimaldi GLD, its Toulon-Rome route has three weekly departures all year round, and during the summer a weekly service between Porto Vecchio and Rome. But whatever the type of cruise - sea, river or ferry - the range is broad enough and adaptable to different needs to enable all companies to take to the sea.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"