You may have seen a social post recently about the International Conference on Cruise Tourism in Andalucia. The CITCA Suncruise conference was held in Malaga, Spain and Storylines was honored to have been invited to speak at the event. With the tagline The New Way of Cruising, we immediately knew Storylines was a great fit for CITCA, with their mission in line with our own vision and values.
In only its second year running, CITCA Suncruise hosts keynote speakers and industry experts from around the globe to discuss the cruise sector, its challenges and where it’s headed. This year's event focused on the resilience of the industry as it emerges from the pandemic, with 2021 called “The Year of the Renaissance” and 2022 viewed as a rebirth for the cruise sector.
Moreover, they discussed how cruise liners are adapting to the new norm by implementing rigorous health and safety protocols, as well as the latest cutting-edge technologies and increased digitization within the industry.
They also included cruise passengers, who will have a voice in a professional Congress, bringing their concerns forward for the first time ever. The new cruiser comes with new expectations around technology and sustainability, which brings us to Storylines' involvement.
Storylines was represented by Lorena Aloe, our Special Programs Director. After a brief introductory video explaining the Storylines concept, Lorena did a terrific job in explaining what makes Storylines different from your regular cruise liner. Tying into the theme of The New Way of Cruising, Lorena took it a step further by painting a picture of The New Way of Living. She talked of the founders, Alister Punton and Shannon Lee’s motivation to start such an innovative company, stemming from the fact that too many people put off their dream of traveling the globe for the pursuit of a career, raising a family and other endeavors. Our founders set out to solve this problem by asking, what if we could merge these worlds together? What if you really could have it all?
The result...Storylines MV Narrative; a luxury, sustainable residential cruise ship fitted out with the latest technology, facilities, and services, enabling owners on board the ship to live, work and educate their children from anywhere in the world. The idea for a ship of floating homes has strong tailwinds (pun intended) as we emerge from the pandemic and people the world over are rethinking their lives and careers. Not only have people spent more precious time with their families due to work from home orders, they have relished the flexibility that comes from working remotely.
As the world reopens, many people are keen to return to global travel, none more so than cruisers. Prior to the pandemic, the cruise industry was the fastest growing sector of the tourism industry. With strict new protocols around hygiene and health measures that the industry has put into operation, the sector is becoming known as the safest form of travel.
Luckily, for Storylines, as we build our first ship, MV Narrative, many of these safety protocols are already in place. Additionally, the technologies discussed at CITCA to make the industry more digitized and cruise operations more efficient are also already being utilized. We have the added benefits of longer amounts of time in ports, less turnover of guests, and a main focus on health and wellness at sea. For us, the future of cruising is now and we are building it.