United Kingdom/ Europe

The UK and Europe are anticipated to experience the highest regional growth in the cruise industry over the next several years – currently projected at a 35% annually.

The Cruise industry is a global market with an 80% concentration in North America and Europe, and has experienced an average annual passenger growth rate of 8.2% since 1980. Of the over 120 million passengers that have taken a cruise during this period, more than 35% of them have cruised in the past five years.

The market for cruising in Europe is projected to grow 35% compounded annually and is at the core of ICE’s decision to increase focus in this region in 2010 under the direction of ICE Europe Ltd. ICE will direct significant capital and human resources into this market in order to fully launch self-supporting offices and operations in the region.

European Cruise Industry in 2009

• Over 4.8 million European residents booked cruises last year, representing 30% of all cruise passengers worldwide, compared with 22% ten years earlier.
• The top five source markets, UK, Germany, Italy, Spain and France, accounted for 80% of the market.
• The UK is the largest source market for cruise passengers in Europe with nearly 2.0 million residents taking cruises during 2009.
• In 1998 an estimated 1.7 million Europeans cruised – by 2009 this figure had grown to over 4.8 million representing an increase of 180% .
• The majority of these cruises visited ports in the Mediterranean, the Baltic and other European regions, generating more than 22.0 million passenger visits at European port cities, a 20% increase over 2008.

ICE Europe Ltd.

ICE Europe is the leading cruise provider to the vacation ownership industry in Europe and provides highly automated cruise and holiday loyalty programmes to a high volume of active travellers through B2B alliances, which gives ICE a significant, unique advantage in the leisure marketplace.

ICE Europe provides full-service travel with an emphasis on cruises, cruise packages and cruise related holidays to Vacation Owners and active travellers throughout Europe with a high concentration in the UK. This core business has been dramatically expanded with newly implemented cruise and travel programmes, Holiday Rewards and Registry Holidays (pre-packaged holiday products) which benefit UK and European based commercial business alliances. In 2010, ICE Europe significantly increased business operations with the announcement of an extension to ICE’s Global Strategic Alliance with RCI (Resort Condominiums International), the world’s leading vacation exchange company into the UK and Europe.

ICE’s concentrated focus on providing ‘integrated cruise fulfillment’ to leading ‘vacation ownership resorts and vacation clubs’, as well as related organizations in the industry such as RCI, has allowed the company to take on the cruise provisioning for over 70% of active vacation owners globally. The UK implementation of the Company’s proprietary leisure travel-based loyalty rewards programme – ICE Platinum Rewards (for ICE Affiliated resorts) gives ICE Europe a distinct advantage in the UK vacation ownership market. The top ICE Affiliated resorts, coupled with private-branded resorts and vacation clubs, as well as active RCI members, currently represent over 500,000 active members. More than 65% of these vacation owners have never experienced a cruise, driving pent up demand for ‘cruise exchange’ and cruise related holidays from these owners.

ICE Europe Product Initiatives

Product innovation has been a hallmark of ICE’s success and in recent years ICE has perfected several key product lines, alternatively packaged cruise and holiday delivery vehicles and travel loyalty programmes.

• Platinum Rewards -- In late 2007, ICE introduced a major new product line offering – Platinum Rewards. This loyalty product line is optimized for vacation owner by including a cruise and vacation exchange capability. The program includes flights, car hire, hotel, cruise and tours offering holidays across the seven seas and seven continents, from traditional Mediterranean, Caribbean, Alaskan and Northern European cruises, to unique River cruises throughout the world, as well as White Water rafting, African Safari’s,  Culinary tours through Tuscany and Biking adventures throughout the world. The Platinum Rewards programme allows the ICE EU members, as well as all ICE Affiliated resorts partners to literally experience the ‘the entire world of holidays’, while earning proprietary platinum holiday rewards for every pound the member spends on holidays through the programme. Platinum Rewards is provided as an ICE branded program, or on a co-branded basis and is absolutely unique in the leisure IndustryThe Platinum Rewards programme has been a resounding success with rewards redemption now being used for over 50% of all transactions.

• Holiday Rewards – Unique membership program for Affinities and Retailers which offers an integrated travel suite allowing members to take advantage of the buying power of ICE toward significant savings on a broad range of holidays. Holiday Rewards provides members unparalleled value, personalized service and access to thousands of world-class destinations via cruises, resorts and trusted tour providers. Holiday Rewards is an online cruise & holiday membership programme that also uniquely provides holiday rewards for all cruises and holidays that members purchase through their membership. Rewards are then redeemed for additional savings on future holidays.