More than 230 executives at the second annual CLIA Executive Partners Conference in London (Photo courtesy Visit London)

The International Association of Cruise Lines (CLIA) successfully closed its second Conference of Executive Partners in London earlier this month. The conference, which was aimed at industry actors, brought together for two days participants from 22 countries, including a large number of industry CEOs and top executives from 17 cruise companies, along with new executive partners.

The dynamic participation of the attendees and the dialogue enriched the interactive workshops and made it possible to cover issues of great interest to the cruise community. The event was highly qualified for its practical sessions on business launch and infrastructure to facilitate both port operations and destination strategy. The session on the importance of demonstrating industry's efforts towards sustainable development was one of the most interesting days for participants. The annual CLIA Europe dinner was attended by high-level members of international organizations such as the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the World Council for Travel and Tourism (WTTC), presented by the President of CLIA Europe, Kyriakos Anastassiadis, who spoke of the speed of change of the cruise industry.

The second day was opened with the Panel of Presidents, followed by the recently presented CRUISE Talks, which addressed a wide range of issues, including Brexit, GDPR and public health. The sustainable management of marine destinations and environmental impacts was actively discussed, and the day ended with a session on the construction of a modern cruise.

The Executive Partners Program is an expanding global platform that includes more than 360 companies in four communities: Port and Destination, Travel and Tourism, Technical and Supply Chain, and Professional Services. The next events include Business on the Beach in Fort Lauderdale on March 6, 2018 together with Seatrade Cruise Global, and the Port and Destination Summit in Lisbon on September 18, 2018 together with Seatrade Cruise Med. For more information, visit www.cruising.org / executivepartners.