by Donald Wood
Last updated: 8:50 AM ET, Fri December 15, 2023
A senior Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) official revealed
Thursday that travel advisors would no longer receive commissions for the
entire cruise fare on advanced bookings, starting in the first quarter of 2024.
According to Travel Weekly, NCL Senior Vice President of Sales,
John Chernesky, announced during the cruise line’s Presidents Club meeting in
New York that the program
will end on March 30.
Chernesky said participating advisors will be able to collect
larger commissions during Wave season on sailings booked through 2026. The non-commissionable
portions of fares (NCFs) were eliminated by NCL last year for agents who booked
sailings at
least 120 days in advance.
Previously, the cruise line forced participating advisors to
enroll in the program after submitting and earning NCL’s approval of their
marketing plans. At the time, Norwegian became the first major contemporary
cruise line to compensate travel advisors on NCFs for reservations booked
outside the 120-day window.
“As we have returned to some semblance of normalcy, it was
time to take those funds that have been used for this program and put them in
other places, whether it's marketing or the business relationships that we have
with each agency,” Chernesky told Travel Weekly.
Earlier this year, NCL added Chernesky as the Senior Vice
President of Sales for North America under the leadership of President David
Herrera. Chernesky was tasked with handling the brand’s overall trade sales
strategy across the U.S. and Canada.
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