Australasia’s Cruisers get together in Sydney

The International Cruise Council of Australia got together on Saturday evening for a glittering awards night at Sydney’s Sheraton on the Park, with the Awards not being the all too frequent pat on the back for the big boys and the cruise operators, but for a change these Awards were all about the travel agent community and the people who actually book passengers on to member cruises!

With Jamie Durie as host, [pictured enjoying a chat with Linda Halliday ICCA GM], the evening saw the good and the great of Australasia’s cruise business, the fastest growing sector of the travel industry, meet to thank their business providers with thanks being expressed by John Molinaro, President of ICCA, not only to the travel trade community, but also for the work by Steve O’Dell, his predecessor, the former ICCA GM, Karen Christensen now with Silversea and the new ICCA GM, Linda Halliday, with this event being her “baptism of fire”, but going off like a well oiled machine with the highly experienced support and backing of cruise industry icon and legend Karin Van Der Pligt whose hand was also firmly on the event helm [pictured with another cruise icon and legend, Richard Cranmer of RCCL and Celebrity]

The event was a great opportunity to see the cruise industry in all it glory and as if on cue, the following morning Silversea’s Silver Cloud sailed through the Heads on an amazingly clear and sundrenched Sydney Harbour – great timing Karen!

The big event of the cruise year has to be the arrival of the two Queens in Sydney on Feb 20 and I don’t mean at the Cross but on the Harbour, which will be a real red letter day for the industry with many thousands of Sydneysiders and visitors anticipated to line the harbour and on flotillas of boats, to the watch the Queens together down under. [Pictured , Phil Hoffman of Phil Hoffman Travel and Gavin Smith of Carnival get togther do discuss the Queens’ arrivals perhaps?]

Oops, back to the Awards: –

The 2006 New Member Agency Achievement Award was won was won by Cheryl Edwards from Destinations Unlimited, Auckland NZ and Wilma Della Vedove of Merizi Travel, Perth [pictured – watch out girls she is right behind you!];

The 2006 Best Cruise Consumer Promotion was won by Wings Away Travel, Melbourne  represented by owner Anne Rogers;

The 2006 Best Cruise Consultant Award was won by Erin O’Sullivan of United Travel at the Mount for NZ and for Australia by Debra Abraham of Cruise Vacations;

The Neil Frazer Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Australasian Cruise Industry was awarded to Judy Marbrow of the Cruise Booking Centre, Adelaide;

The 2006 Media Award was won by Barry O’Brien from Adelaide for his article on a 7 day cruise on the Costa Mediterraneo;

The National Cruise Agency of the Year Australia Award was won by Croydon Travel Victoria represented by Dan Kotzman; and

The National Cruise Agency of the Year Award New Zealand was won by The Cruise Company, Mount Eden, represented by Chris Hammond.

[Pictured: Dan on the right and Chris on the left]

Ten out of ten to the ICCA for a great night and in particular, for not boring all the guests senseless with dozens of award – the other industry awards could certainly learn something from this event!

Report by John Alwyn-Jones for TravelMole