SYDNEY, NS - The guest of honour was a no show but Champagne corks popped just the same as One Ocean Expeditions RCGS Resolute was named and celebrated Tuesday afternoon. TravelPulse Canada was the exclusive trade media on hand to cover the historic event.
High winds prevented the third and newest member of the OOE fleet's arrival at her new home at the Port of Sydney.
Rather than the customary bottle of bubbles across the hull, the ship was christened by its newly named patron, Commissioner of Nunavut, Nellie T. Kusugak, with a Champagne toast.
Guests were to board the RCGS Resolute for tours, followed by a celebration and dinner before bedding down in one of the cabins.
But in true Cape Breton style, even without the ship, the party went ahead anyway in the cruise terminal building, with food, drinks and a rousing performance by Nova Scotia stars the Barra MacNeils.
RCGS Resolute is named for the storied 19th-century ship HMS Resolute and is the first vessel to have the Royal Canadian Geographic Society prefix attached.
The addition to the OOE fleet is good news for travel agents, who will be able to offer expedition cruise clients more choice in destinations.
RCGS Resolute will take travellers to Antarctica and beyond as OOE expands, including voyages to the Chilean Fjords, the Faroe Islands, Panama and Atlantic Canada.
Like the other ships in the OOE fleet, RCGS Resolute offers the company's signature blend of science and education from onboard experts with tourism experiences.
Catherine Lawton, OOE general manager, said much of the company's success rests with relationships with the travel trade.
"We would not have our unprecedented growth without the support of our travel partners, without a shadow of a doubt," she said.
The recommissioning ceremony "goes far beyond the fact we need more space to house more passengers, she said. "It goes deeper into the very commitment and longterm relationships we've built with our travel partners."
A OOE sales manager said travel agents are the company's "number one sales channel" and a "critical" part of the company's success.
Agents benefit from extensive product training with OOE, including webinars, tool kits, interactive PDFs and trip notes, as well as in-person meetings and familiarization excursions.
Agents with OOE product training earn commissions from 10% to 20%. An outside sales team works with agents to facilitate all bookings.
A new program is in the works to expand travel trade education to create One Ocean specialists.
Laurielle Penny, director of Worldwide Quest travel in Toronto, has been booking clients on OOE ships since the company started more than 10 years ago.
"It is really the best of both worlds, a great meeting of expedition cruising with a touch of luxury," she said of RCGS Resolute.
She does both whole ship charters for university groups and single travel bookings.
In fact, Cape Breton native OOE managing director Andre Prossin said he learned to sail in the waters just outside the cruise ship terminal building.
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