Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd., the parent company of Royal Caribbean, Azamara Club Cruises and Celebrity Cruises, has announced the launch of GoBe, a new website that allows travelers to book day tours and activities in hundreds of cruise destinations worldwide. The new website is an independent subsidiary of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.
The company does not currently offer travel agents commission, a GoBe representative tells Travel Agent, but it is exploring options with large travel advisor networks that could be announced down the line.
The new website offers travel agents the chance to search by destination, interest or group requirements, and offers options like sea kayaking in Alaska’s Icy Strait Point, a private helicopter tour of Rome, or a private food tour in Shanghai. Other available options a tour of the Crystal Caves in Grand Cayman, a Lucha Libre wrestling and cocktails experience in Mexico, and a surfing class at Geriba Beach in Brazil.
The new website currently offers tours in 896 cities and 97 countries, with plans to triple the quantity of activities it offers by the end of the year.
The move marks the second time this week that a major travel company has announced an investment in booking activities. Earlier this week Marriott International announced a new investment in PlacePass, a move that Marriott said would add more than 100,000 travel experiences worldwide for members of its Marriott Rewards and Starwood Preferred Guest loyalty programs. According to a Marriott representative Travel Agent spoke with, there is no word yet on whether or not travel agents will be able to book the new experiences on behalf of their clients. Marriott says the company is still looking into how exactly the service will be offered as it begins to work toward the actual launch of the service later this year.
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