At a live press event hosted by Hearst Tower in New York, Holland America Line today announced its new exclusive partnership with "O, The Oprah Magazine."
In attendance were the cruise company's President, Orlando Ashford, and the magazine's Editor at Large, Gayle King, and Editor in Chief, Lucy Kaylin, to discuss the new onboard program and theme cruises.
Soon after discussing a potential collaboration over lunch, the two brands admitted that it was a corporate falling in love that sparked what was to come, believing pairing the power of travel with the magazine's personal growth endeavors to be a perfect fit. In fact, there will be a total of five branded cruises to start beginning with the "O, The Oprah Magazine" Share the Adventure Cruise this July with Oprah Winfrey along for the ride in Alaska.
In a press release, she said, "I'm so excited to continue 2017 as my Year of Adventure with another bold, new place I've never been before: Alaska!" Also onboard the Eurodam on July 15-22, 2017 roundtrip from Seattle, Washington will be Gayle King and others from the team. Oprah herself is only scheduled to be on the ship for two days of the special weeklong cruise, but the sailings will continue beyond on another four departures representing the celebrity dynamo and her brand.
The additional "O, The Oprah Magazine" Adventure of Your Life cruises will be scheduled aboard the Koningsdam for 11 days to the Southern Caribbean from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida on November 29, 2017; the Nieuw Amsterdam for 7 days to the Eastern Caribbean from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida on March 3, 2018; the Eurodam for 7 days to Alaska from Seattle, Washington on August 11, 2018 and the Nieuw Amsterdam for 7 days to the Western Caribbean on October 28, 2018.
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The theme cruises will showcase "O Magazine"-related activities developed with Lucy Kaylin and creative director Adam Glassman. Plus, members of the SuperSoul 100 humanitarians will also join the voyages to inspire guests to live their best lives.
Beyond the select theme sailings, over 300 North American cruises will also feature partnership programming from August 2017 to 2018, encompassing meditation, tai chi, healthy cooking demos and more. Of course, an onboard book club will be a part of it as well.
"We are deeply honored that 'O, The Oprah Magazine' chose Holland America Line as its first cruise line partner to further our shared belief that travel and wellness have the power to open minds, build connections and inspire shared humanity," said Orlando Ashford, president of Holland America Line, in a press release.
"Our commitment to providing authentic experiences for our guests is at the forefront of all we do, and this collaboration is going to empower our guests in a whole new way with thought-provoking and enriching activities and content developed together with the experts at 'O, The Oprah Magazine.'"
The partnership will be promoted in full force with a March 2017 magazine contest that will award three readers passage on the inaugural Alaskan cruise with Oprah and Gayle. The magazine will also run high-profile related content in the April 2017 issue, as well as in-book, online and broadcast integrations through 2017 and 2018.
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"What better way to celebrate Oprah's Year of Adventure than to partner on an incredible new initiative with Holland America Line," said Jayne Jamison, senior vice president, publisher and chief revenue officer of "O, The Oprah Magazine," in a press release. "Offering readers a chance to experience the thrill of adventure firsthand, this partnership pairs the eye-opening wonder of travel with the soulful, inspiring content found in every issue of 'O.'"
With household females largely planning cruises for their families, the mostly feminine-driven but masculinely-relevant magazine brand partnership is a very smart way of tapping into a core travel market that has wide name recognition across a very diverse swatch of the public. And the likelihood that a Holland America Line cruise will become one of Oprah's famed "favorite things" after she experiences it first hand is also very high.
When taking into account the full portfolio of brand partnerships that Holland America has recently secured, such as "America's Test Kitchen," AFAR and BBC Earth in addition to "O, The Oprah Magazine," the company is in a prime spot for growth as it continues to evolve its image with new ships like the Koningsdam and Nieuw Statendam and third Pinnacle-class vessel to follow.
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