What:
FCCA Training Program in partnership with Aquila Center for Cruise Excellence and Aon Risk Solutions

Why:
To help destinations make a lasting impression on cruise passengers and improve their impact from cruise tourism by instilling best practices in operations that influence passengers’ experience and satisfaction, as well as cruise lines’ decisions to call a destination. The program will enable a destination to enhance the cruise passenger experience, and happier passengers spend more money, give better feedback to cruise lines and their friends and family, and are more likely to return for another cruise or a stay-over visit. The program also focuses on the necessary safety and security logistics that will both make passengers safer and fulfill the cruise industry’s stringent standards.

How:
An intensive, interactive, all-encompassing two-day training session incorporating best practices from entities specializing in cruise tourism’s on-land operations .

Aquila Center for Cruise Excellence’s one-and-a-half-day session encompasses the destination experience from gangway to gangway. It empowers destinations to make the best possible impression on passengers, from the initial onshore welcome to streamlined transportation and front line staff and tour guides who can make the destination and experience truly stand out. The Aquila training and coaching programs include:

Greeter & Front-Line Staff Service Excellence

Everyone interacting with cruise passengers serves as an ambassador for a destination and affects cruise passengers’ experiences and perceptions. This especially holds true for greeters, ambassadors, and front-line staff, including tour guides, taxi and bus drivers. This workshop specifically helps these front line understand the importance of their role in welcoming cruise guests to their destination.

Topics include:
• The Impact of Tourism and the important Cruise Sector
• All about Shore Excursions and Destination Experiences
• The Front Line: Critical to the Success of Cruise
• The Cruise Lines’ Service Expectations
• How to Make a Positive Impression and Ensure Guest Satisfaction
• Understanding Cultural Differences
• Dealing with Pressure and Communicating Effectively
• Managing Difficult Situations and Handling Complaints
• Creating a Culture of Service
• Exceeding Guest Expectations

This workshop addresses all of the above, teaching how to develop community partnerships that work, and how a destination can work together to foster a Culture of Service.

This workshop is followed up with a session with the destination, community stakeholders, and Tour Operators to discuss Guest Service challenges and opportunities.

FCCA/Aquila Tour Guide Excellence Program: Online international certification program that teaches participants what makes an excellent tour guide and the skills to turn that knowledge into a practical reality when guiding cruise shore excursions. The program involves six interactive sessions on cruise-specific topics, including: hospitality, service, research, presentation, preparation and risk management.

FCCA/Aquila ACE Tour Operator Designation: The ACE Tour Operator Designation is awarded to Tour Operators who meet the requirements and criteria for ACE Service Excellence in the cruise industry. This program is primarily focused on the sustainability of the operations of the company, and the service they provide the cruise lines and to guests. The process for achieving the ACE Tour Operator designation includes an assessment of the operation against a set of 42 standards and tools and coaching around these standards.

For more information about the training and costs, please contact Beth Kelly Hatt, Aquila Center for Cruise Excellence Beth@CruiseExcellence.com 506-633-1224 www.CruiseExcellence.com

Aon Risk Solutions’ half-day Tour Operator Safety and Risk Management workshop offers destinations and stakeholders an opportunity to learn the ins and outs of insurance, safety, and risk management to aid in the delivery of safer tour products, enhance guest experience, and satisfy cruise industry stringent requirements.

As the cruise industry’s growth continues, operators face a wide range of challenges, including but not limited to, changing global regulations for passenger liability, the birth of innovative tour products that call for a more careful review of safety protocols, and increased litigiousness. This Aon training session highlights risk management and insurance solutions designed to anticipate these ever-changing exposures.

This half-day workshop features an overview of cruise line insurance requirements and introduction to the FCCA’s Tour Operator Liability Program. Participants explore the role of guest safety, discuss emerging risks, review actual claims scenarios to uncover opportunities to mitigate risk, and examine the long-term impact of safety and security concerns. The curriculum includes an interactive segment on preparation of safety management systems and do’s and don’ts in crisis response and claims management.

Topics include:
• Safety & Risk Management in Tour Products
• Cruise Line Insurance Requirements
• Tools to Enhance Your Risk Profile
• Liability Release & Assumption of Risk Waivers
• Safety Management Systems
• Crisis Response & Claim Management

This training program can be delivered in English or Spanish by an Aon facilitator in a classroom setting.

The FCCA Member Lines have for many years also provided:

ENVIRONMENTAL PROJECTS

• Cleaning Beaches/Roads
• Hurricane Clean-up
• Community Projects

FCCA OUTREACH PROGRAM

The FCCA recognizes the importance of working with the communities in the Caribbean and Latin America. In collaboration between the FCCA and our destination partners, we are expanding to make our program available to each destination on a request basis.

Now is your chance to help us help you. The FCCA Outreach Program is designed around what each destination requests, ranging from any of the following projects below; plus if you have additional projects, please let us know. We are not limited to the projects listed.

• Cleaning Beaches/Roads
• Painting Schools-Hospitals-Orphanages
• Hurricane Clean up
• Crew Visiting Elderly
• Community Projects
• Hospital Volunteering
• Service Excellence Workshop
• Taxi Pride Workshop
• Minor Repair Projects

For more information about the FCCA outreach programs please contact Adam Ceserano at 954-441-8881 or via e-mail.