LOS ANGELES (August 1, 2024) – Viking® (NYSE: VIK) has launched its newly enhanced Viking Travel Agent Portal, a significant upgrade designed to equip travel advisors with superior tools and resources to effectively sell Viking voyages. This improved platform, accessible at Viking.com/advisor, underscores Viking’s dedication to providing unparalleled support to its valued travel advisor partners, ultimately benefiting their clients. The updated portal boasts a comprehensive suite of features aimed at streamlining the booking process and simplifying marketing efforts, making it easier than ever for advisors to promote Viking’s diverse offerings, from river and ocean cruises to expedition voyages.
Torstein Hagen, Chairman and CEO of Viking, emphasized the critical role of travel advisors in Viking’s success: “For 27 years, Viking has been committed to offering comfortable and enriching travel experiences, and our strong relationships with travel advisors have been integral to our journey. We pride ourselves on our trade-friendly policies, notably being the first major cruise line to eliminate Non-Commissionable Fares (NCFs). This enhanced viking travel agent portal is the latest demonstration of our commitment to being the premier business partner for travel advisors.”
The Viking Travel Agent Portal introduces several key enhancements designed to create a more intuitive and efficient booking experience for travel advisors. These improvements include:
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Effortless Voyage Search: Advisors can now navigate Viking’s extensive range of cruises with ease, utilizing intuitive filters to search by destination city, port, travel month, or specific date ranges. This refined search functionality ensures advisors can quickly pinpoint the ideal itineraries for their clients.
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Streamlined Offer Code Application: A new offer code search feature allows advisors to efficiently find and book sailings that qualify for specific promotions. This ensures clients benefit from all applicable offers, enhancing the value proposition of Viking voyages.
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Enhanced Booking Management: The updated booking dashboard provides advisors with improved organizational tools, including the ability to sort bookings by upcoming payment deadlines. This feature simplifies booking management and helps ensure timely processing of client payments.
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Simplified Client Booking Retrieval: Finding specific client bookings is now easier than ever. Advisors can search by guest name and further refine their search by booking status, saving valuable time and improving client service efficiency.
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Interactive Stateroom Selection: The portal now offers an interactive room selection feature, allowing advisors to choose from all available stateroom categories with a visual and user-friendly interface. This enhancement provides greater control and transparency in the stateroom selection process.
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Integrated Air Plus Option: Advisors can now seamlessly add Air Plus to bookings directly within the online booking process, eliminating the need to contact the Viking Air Department separately. This integration streamlines the booking workflow and saves advisors valuable time.
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Instant eQuote Generation: The new portal enables advisors to instantly generate professional eQuotes. Advisors can download a PDF quote or print directly for client presentations, providing a convenient and efficient way to share pricing and itinerary details.
This portal launch is the latest in a series of initiatives highlighting Viking’s strong commitment to the travel advisor community. Earlier this month, Viking was honored with multiple accolades from TravelAge West’s 2024 WAVE Awards, underscoring the cruise line’s industry leadership and exceptional travel advisor support. Viking swept five categories, including “River Cruise Line Providing the Best Travel Advisor Support,” a testament to their dedication to this critical partnership. Further accolades included “Best River Cruise Line for U.S. Sailings” for the Viking Mississippi voyages, “Best New River Cruise Ship” for the Viking Aton on the Nile, “Cruise Line with the Highest Client Satisfaction (less than 1,300 passengers)” for ocean voyages, and “Expedition Cruise Line with the Highest Client Satisfaction.” These awards, voted on by over 6,400 travel advisor professionals, recognize the best in the travel industry and highlight Viking’s consistent excellence.
[Placeholder for image related to Viking Travel Advisor Portal features – alt text: Viking Travel Agent Portal interface showcasing streamlined booking features for travel advisors]
[Placeholder for image related to Viking cruise ships – alt text: Viking river cruise ship sailing on a European river, highlighting Viking’s diverse cruise offerings]
Viking, established in 1997, is renowned for providing destination-focused travel experiences on rivers, oceans, and lakes worldwide. Designed for intellectually curious travelers, Viking offers enriching journeys centered around science, history, culture, and cuisine. Chairman Torstein Hagen’s vision of providing experiences “for The Thinking Person™” has led Viking to garner over 450 awards, including being consistently ranked #1 for Rivers, Oceans, and Expeditions by Condé Nast Traveler and Travel + Leisure. No other travel company has achieved simultaneous top honors from both publications, solidifying Viking’s position as a leader in the travel industry.
For more information about Viking and the enhanced Viking Travel Agent Portal, travel advisors are encouraged to visit Viking.com/advisor or contact Viking at 1-800-2-VIKING (1-800-284-5464). Additional resources and insights can be found on Viking’s award-winning enrichment channel, www.viking.tv.
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