Cruise Boutique’s new dedicated GM

FLIGHT Centre Travel Group is ramping up its commitment to the Travel Associates “Cruise Boutique” offshoot, this morning announcing the appointment of Donna Elliott (nee Grant) as Travel Associates (TA) General Manager of Cruise Boutique and Virtuoso.

Elliott, an 18-year veteran with Flight Centre, has been national brand leader for Travel Associates for the last five years, prior to which she held a range of roles within Flight Centre, Escape Travel and Student Flights locally as well as three years based in New York with Liberty Travel.

Flight Centre launched Cruise Boutique last year, with an initial 14 offices across Australia and plans for further significant growth (CW 12 Aug 2019).

Cruise Boutique advisors have at least 10 years of experience in travel, with Elliott aiming to deliver growth by developing the brand’s broader market strategy, as well as working with individual businesses to expand their client networks and lift market share.

“The Australian cruise sector, both for homeport and international sailings, is forecast to continue its growth and we want to go on this journey with our clients, providing them with the very best cruising experiences globally,” Elliott said.

The portfolio will also see her work closely with the TA network of Virtuoso offices, with the aim of growing the brand’s “ultrapremium credentials”.

“The combined Cruise Boutique and Virtuoso portfolios align well, signalling Travel Associates’ plan to differentiate the brand in the market thanks to an unrivalled focus on customer service and specialisation, combined with extremely strong relationships with cruise partners and the Virtuoso team in Australia,” the company said.

Travel Associates also recently appointed former Norwegian Cruise Line senior executive, Nicole Costantin as the GM of its new ASPIRE brand and product platform (CW 04 Feb), managing a “comprehensive range of curated luxury leisure products and client benefits”.