News

For Immediate Release

Anchors Away and Classic Cruise and Vacations Join
Expedia CruiseShipCenters as Part of Stronger.Together Program

April 26th, 2010

Expedia CruiseShipCenters’ Stronger.Together program continues to attract significant interest from established travel agencies with two more industry veterans joining the fold. Ed Mass of Anchors Away Cruises and Tours, will convert his two Florida agencies to Expedia CruiseShipCenters, Clearwater and Port Charlotte respectively, while Paul Podwika of Classic Cruise and Vacations in State College, PA will become Expedia CruiseShipCenters, Nittany Valley.

After more than 35 years in the travel business, Ed Mass has seen the industry go through a lot of changes. According to him, “The travel agency of the future has cutting edge technology, strong online presence, relevant marketing, customer retention programs and a network of successful vacation planners,” he said. “Expedia CruiseShipCenters is leading the way in all of these areas, which is why we chose to use their systems and strategies to grow our business with,” Ed added.

Anchors Away and Classic Cruise and Vacations follow in the footsteps of Cruises International and Just Cruises and Vacations, who also joined the Expedia CruiseshipCenters family this year. The new additions bring Expedia CruiseShipCenters’ franchise network to a total of 127 locations in North America who all benefit from the company’s recognizable brand, economical marketing programs and multi-million dollar CruiseDesk technology.

Paul Podwika, Owner of Classic Cruise and Vacations, is also extremely optimistic about his decision to join the award-winning franchise team. “I chose Expedia CruiseShipCenters because their marketing, technology and host agency model allows me to grow my business in ways that weren’t possible before,” says Paul. “My agents reap the benefits as well, each receiving their own personal website and CruiseDesk login, which allows them to run their business from their home, the office, or anywhere in the world,” he added.

CruiseDesk, Expedia CruiseShipCenters’ industry-renowned customer relationship management technology, is an integrated tool set which allows agents to manage their research, bookings, marketing and contact database, all through one online system. Both Anchors Away and Classic Cruise and Vacations plan to leverage the power of CruiseDesk to build out their teams of travel agents both locally and throughout the US.