Charlotte, NC (February 5, 2008) — Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) recently announced it has selected CruiseDeals.com as its President's Elite Travel Agency of the Year. The award was presented to John Keen with CruiseDeals.com during special award ceremonies on board Norwegian Gem, with more than 2,400 of NCL's top travel partners aboard.


NCL chose Charlotte-based CruiseDeals.com as its President's Elite Travel Agency of the Year because while only in its fourth year of business, CruiseDeals.com had the highest percentage increase in 2007 revenue of any NCL Elite President's Club member, selling through online, brick and mortar, call center and home-based channels. In 2007, John and his team made a focused decision to significantly increase their NCL business because of the high demand for Freestyle Cruising. This agency has clearly demonstrated that the cruise business still has significant room for growth.

“In a short period of time, CruiseDeals.com has become one of NCL's top performers. It is a testimony to our strong working relationship with the right focus, the right marketing and the right training, not to mention the right leadership from John Keen and his management team,” said Scott Rogers, NCL's senior vice president of marketing and sales. “We rely upon our travel partners to expand the reach and impact of our innovative Freestyle Cruising product. Cruisedeals.com has done exactly that, and as a result, it is our pleasure to award them with one of our most prestigious awards, our 2007 Elite President's Club Agency of the Year.”

Keen noted, “This award is a testament to the hard work and dedication of the incredible team we have assembled at CruiseDeals.com. We are all humbled and very appreciative to Norwegian Cruise Line for their support. NCL continues to innovate and improve on an already wonderful product. We are excited to be such a strong partner with NCL.”

During the festivities, NCL travel partners were given the red carpet treatment while enjoying the flexibility of Freestyle Cruising aboard Norwegian Gem, the newest addition to the NCL fleet - the youngest and most distinctive in the industry. In addition, travel partners on board were the first to hear about Freestyle 2.0, a major enhancement to its on-board product fleet wide, that will further improve the guest experience, including an increased investment in food of $50 million over the next two years, and an upgrading of stateroom bedding and amenities across the fleet. They also were introduced to a new travel agent program, Partnership 2.0, which includes major changes to the way NCL does business and is designed to strengthen its relationships with travel partners.

To let CruiseDeals.com plan your next cruise vacation, visit www.cruisedeals.com or call 800.668.6414.