Cruise Planners Makes a Splash with New Travel Advisors Despite Water Main Break

Construction-related water pipe break affects STAR University training in the City of Fort Lauderdale

Cruise Planners holds new franchisee training throughout the year in South Florida. This comprehensive six-day program called STAR (Sales Training to Accelerate Results) University is held at the Greater Fort Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center, a popular spot for cruise industry events due to its location at Port Everglades.

Recently, more than 100 new Cruise Planners franchisees eagerly began their journey to become successful travel advisors. Halfway through the training, trouble struck the city when a local contractor reportedly drilled into a water source causing a water main break. The disruption affected the majority of Fort Lauderdale.

Cruise Planners travel advisors attending Star University

The Convention Center declared a mandatory evacuation within the hour of the water main break. Soon after, the Hilton Fort Lauderdale Marina and neighboring hotels (where the travel advisors were staying), had also been affected with no water or air conditioning and hotels that were not affected by the water main break were filling up quickly.

“With it being the peak of the summer in South Florida, we could not continue our plan, so we had to pivot and think on our feet to support more than 100 of the Cruise Planners family impacted,” said Vicky Garcia, COO and co-owner of Cruise Planners. “Our quick-thinking and experienced Cruise Planners team sprang into action to secure an alternate hotel and training space for everyone affected at STAR University.”

Within two hours of being notified of the disruption, Cruise Planners Home Office Team and executives rallied the new franchisees and resolved the problem:

• A new hotel was secured for the franchisees at the Costa Hollywood Beach Resort
• A new meeting space was booked for STAR University at Margaritaville Hollywood Beach
• Travel advisors were taken to the Hilton to pack their bags then transferred to their new hotel

Although this unexpected situation could have been an aggravation, Cruise Planners turned this real-life example into a teaching moment. Issues happen all the time during vacations, but it’s up to the travel advisor to communicate with their client and utilize resources to resolve the situation—and that’s exactly what Cruise Planners did. They came together and figured out how to swiftly resolve the issue; this included contacting local hotels via supplier relationships, staying calm, displaying a good demeanor and fully communicating with guests.

“The advisors got a real taste of what can happen at any moment during a client’s trip,” said Cruise Planners SVP, Sales and Marketing Theresa Scalzitti, who was onsite with the team when they received the notice to evacuate. “The quick actions taken by the team on-site and the team back at Cruise Planners Home Office helped us take a potentially disastrous situation and make it a great one.”

Every single agent was beyond impressed with how Cruise Planners were able to turn things around so quickly for them. 

Scalzitti added, “Our new travel franchise owners really saw what a good travel advisor can, and should do, for their clients in the face of client vacation complications. We have so many amazing Cruise Planners travel advisors who work tirelessly every day to ensure their customers have the best vacation experience possible. That’s the value of a great travel advisor.”

The new franchisees appreciated the unique learning journey and successfully completed the rest of the STAR University programing. They ended the week with two spectacular ship inspections at Port Everglades and PortMiami.

Cruise Planners would like to thank everyone who quickly assisted during this water crisis to accommodate all the needs of our training including the Greater Fort Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center, Hilton Fort Lauderdale Marina, Margaritaville Hollywood Beach, Costa Hollywood Beach Resort, and the Home Office Team—their cooperation and promptness allowed for the continuation of STAR University.