Gen Y and Gen X travelers are booking cruises through travel agents in surprisingly large numbers. For agents who want to tap this promising market, social media is the way to go.
More than half of Gen Y and Gen X cruisers plan and book through travel agents at least some of the time, according to CLIA’s 2011 Cruise Market Profile Study, which was released this week.
According to the survey, 52% of Gen Y cruisers (25 to 30) and 57% of Gen X cruisers (31 to 46) consulted a travel agent in the cruise planning and booking process. Cruisers were survey respondents who had taken a cruise at least once in their lives.
The overwhelming majority of all cruisers in the CLIA survey sailed on contemporary or premium brands, and one might expect that younger cruisers are most likely to book on less-expensive contemporary and premium lines.
The CLIA study found that seniors, ages 66 and up, were most likely (79%) to use agents to book a cruise. More than two-thirds (68%) of boomers consulted an agent.