Building up its expedition program, Hurtigruten is way ahead of its peers in China. An 88-day repositioning pole-to-pole cruise aboard the Fram this fall has been successfully sold locally, according to William Harber, president, China and Asia-Pacific.

“The allocated space for this sailing has been filled and we’re starting to promote the fall 2018 sailing to our Chinese guests and across Asia-Pacific,” said Harber, who joined Hurtigruten in late 2016.

Running the brand’s Asia presence from a Hong Kong office, Harber said the company had successfully sourced guests from China, Australia, India and Japan.

“We’re broadening and deepening our commercial capability across these markets and have a renewed focus on Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, and Korea,” Harber added. “Our approach is to find the best possible travel agent partners and collaborate with them to ensure their businesses are successful.”

He said the commercial base for the company in Asia must be able to scale in line with strategic plans.

Depending on group size, from 30 guests to a full charter, Hurtigruten can make product changes and add Chinese speaking staff, guides and lecturers aboard, as well as make food and beverage adjustments.

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For insight and in-depth analysis of the Asia-Pacific and Chinese cruise market, download the 2018 China Market Report.

About the 2018 China Market Report

The 2018 China Market Report by Cruise Industry News is the only resource covering the future trajectory of the Chinese and Asia-Pacific cruise industry, presenting the past, present and future in a concise 95-plus page PDF download.

It is the only forward looking and independently-researched data available on the Chinese cruise market.

Cruise Industry News profiles all the major cruise lines operating in Asia, from Carnival Corporation to Royal Caribbean and local operators.

In addition, there are discussions with leading Chinese travel agents about the charter model and pricing trends, port news and updates from across the region, and a look at the fleet of ships in Asia through 2027.

There is also exclusive analysis and statistics of the Asia-Pacific market going back to 1998 and supply projections through 2027, in addition to a break-down of Asia-Pacific and China by operator and market capacity. Click here to learn more.