New Seabourn Encore maiden season now open for sale

SINGAPORE - When making accommodation reservations within 48 hours, travellers don’t need to sacrifice quality, breadth of choice or satisfaction for spontaneity. Following success in the US and Canada, Booking.com, the world’s number one accommodation site, announced the launch of Booking Now across Southeast Asia. A new mobile app that revolutionises the on-demand travel space, Booking Now provides a completely personalised booking experience tailored to individual customer preferences and location. By incorporating user behaviour data as well as GPS technology, it is the only app to showcase the world’s largest selection of more than 600,000 properties around the globe to provide custom accommodation recommendations for spontaneous travellers. The Booking Now app will be available in 42 languages as it launches in countries across the world over the coming days to ensure extensive global optimisation for travellers.

Rooted in and developed out of a deep understanding of proprietary customer data, the launch of Booking Now supports the growing importance of mobile when it comes to booking accommodations within 48 hours. According to Booking.com data, almost half of worldwide reservations made within 48 hours are booked on a mobile device, and in some markets, more than 50 percent of all spontaneous bookings are made via a mobile device.

“With the launch of Booking Now, we’re increasing our investment in mobile by leveraging our global scale, assets and partnerships to accommodate the growing number of customers who are booking reservations within two days or less of their stay,” said Darren Huston, Chief Executive Officer of Booking.com. “The new App puts users at the centre of the booking experience, drawing from our vast database of properties to meet their specific preferences at the very moment they need to book. Booking Now is designed to deliver a seamless mobile experience for spontaneous consumers, fitting perfectly into their multi-device, on-demand lifestyle.”

Booking Now personalises real-time search results based on the unique traveller profile created by each first-time user to indicate specific accommodation preferences, such as desired price range and options like parking, breakfast and Wi-Fi. Users are then presented with the most relevant available accommodation suggestions based on their profile and within their defined location, allowing them to modify their choice of accommodation to whichever local delights are on their ‘must-see’ list. Users can quickly and easily browse through the recommended options with a single swipe of their finger and book their preferred accommodation in just two taps. With Booking Now’s predictive analytics, the more frequently customers use the app, the more personalised their recommended matches become. Additionally, as user’s swipe through the app, they can pin their top hotel choice to the map to create a short, visual list for quick and easy reference.

“We are increasingly finding that travellers’ throughout Southeast Asia are booking their trips, for either business or pleasure, on a much more spontaneous basis,” said Oliver Hua, Managing Director of Booking.com in Asia Pacific. “Booking Now is the perfect solution and travel ‘buddy’ for our more impulsive and on-the-move travellers. They are able to land in a destination and instantaneously book accommodation that fits their every need and desire, in as little as two taps of their finger.’’

Further customising the experience, Booking Now results can also be based on the user’s current street-level location anywhere in the world. The app’s GPS technology then provides step-by-step directions from the current location directly to the user’s accommodation of choice, a first for hotel-booking applications.

Backed by Booking.com’s reliable global network with 24/7 customer support and access to the world’s largest network of more than 42 million verified guest reviews, Booking Now is designed to sit alongside the existing Booking.com mobile application and will continue to offer users the best price, with no hidden fees and a seamless “pay when you stay” model.
SEATTLE - Seabourn has opened for sale the maiden season itineraries for Seabourn Encore, the newest addition to join the ultra-luxury, small ship cruise line. Between December 2016 and April 2017, the ship will sail on a variety of voyages exploring the exotic coasts of Arabia and India, the gilded temples and tropical isles of Southeast Asia, and the incredible natural splendors and vibrant, friendly cities of Australia and New Zealand.

"We're excited to offer a diverse range of itineraries for the maiden season of Seabourn Encore and provide our guests with the opportunities to visit some of the most charming and sought-after destinations in Asia, Australia and New Zealand on the world's newest and most beautiful ultra-luxury ship," said Seabourn President Richard Meadows. "Seabourn Encore will set a new standard of ultra-luxury cruising that can only be found on Seabourn, and we can't wait to share her with our guests."

Following the ship's delivery in December 2016, Seabourn Encore will offer two pre-inaugural cruises, providing travelers with a preview of the vessel before its official maiden voyage. On December 4, 2016, Seabourn Encore will sail on a 16-day pre-inaugural cruise from Athens bound for Dubai, visiting various exotic ports including Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, Israel; Petra, Jordan; and Muscat, Oman. The voyage will be followed by an 18-day pre-inaugural holiday voyage departing Dubai on December 20, 2016, sailing to Arabia, India and Southeast Asia before arriving at Singapore.

On January 7, 2017, Seabourn Encore will make its official debut with a gala naming ceremony in the vibrant Asian city-state of Singapore. Following the naming, the vessel will embark on its 10-day official inaugural voyage to Bali, including stops in Surabaya, Java; Celukan Bawang, Bali; and Slawi Bay, Komodo, Indonesia. Seabourn Encore will go on to spend its maiden season operating a series of 16-day voyages cruising the Pacific Rim in Australia and New Zealand, calling at the metropolitan cities of Sydney and Melbourne and exploring both islands of New Zealand. The ship will visit popular ports, such as Auckland and Wellington, while exploring other picturesque towns, including New Zealand's southernmost city, Oban on Stewart Island, and the charming port of Picton, the gateway to the stunning scenery of Marlborough Sound.

In April 2017, Seabourn Encore will return to Europe with two 16- and 18-day Arabia and India voyages. The ship will spend the summer in the waters of the eastern Mediterranean with a series of seven-day voyages.

Seabourn Encore will expand and build on the line's award-winning and highly acclaimed Odyssey-class ships, which revolutionized ultra-luxury cruising with enhanced accommodations and innovative amenities when they were introduced between 2009 and 2011. Seabourn Encore will maintain the line's high ratio of space per guest, enabling highly personalized service by close to one staff member for each guest on board. A sister ship, Seabourn Ovation, will join the fleet in 2018, and, with the addition of the two new ships, Seabourn will have the youngest and most modern ultra-luxury fleet in the industry.

Designed by hospitality design icon Adam D. Tihany, Seabourn Encore will feature modern design elements and innovations consistent with the line's reputation for understated elegance. The 40,350-GRT ship will be configured with one additional deck and new expanded public areas, and is expected to carry just 604 guests, based on double occupancy. In addition, every suite will feature a private veranda.

Seabourn has revealed renderings and updates about Seabourn Encore via a new dedicated microsite: http://encore.seabourn.com. Filled with imagery, details and updates on the ship's progress, including "sunsets until launch," the microsite offers an inside look at the most exciting Seabourn launch in years. Additional details, news and images will be revealed on the site on an ongoing basis.

sourced:traveldailynews.asia