As the calendar turns to October and Australian travel agents celebrate Cruise Month, Railbookers are sharing their latest deals and offerings to provide the perfect solution for travellers headed on extended holidays through Europe and beyond.
Agents and their customers who are looking to plan for their 2025 and 2026 holidays can take advantage of the company’s current sale, which offers savings up to $800 per couple on every trip.
“While we’ve seen tremendous overall growth in the Australia and New Zealand market, one area of our business that we know is popular among our travel agent partners is pre- and post-cruise itineraries,” said Railbookers Group President & CEO Frank Marini. “Travel agents are using Railbookers as a connector with rail, hotel, sightseeing and transfers to help piece together the larger, more complex journeys – such as before or after cruises or extending a trip.”
Among the nearly 80 packages featured in the Railbookers’ Cruise Extensions collection, the top-trending and most popular destinations include Switzerland, Italy, Norway, and Alaska. The Swiss Alps are among the biggest draws, with 54 percent of all Australian cruise extension bookings featuring rides on the world-renowned Bernina Express and Glacier Express scenic trains.
The popularity of these cruise extensions has played a part in leading Railbookers to 61 percent revenue growth in Australia versus the same time last year, with travellers averaging 11 nights on their journeys. Among the company’s data of customers surveyed after booking, more than 70 percent are using Railbookers as a portion of an overall larger holiday, while more than a third are travelling for special occasions like birthdays, anniversaries, retirements, or other celebrations.
“Whether it’s our low deposits to book, booking window from last minute up to two years out, and much more, we’re able to save agents time and make them money by helping create the ideal independent FIT holiday for their customers,” Marini added.
Railbookers has curated a collection of itineraries that begin or end in most major ocean and river cruise port cities across Europe, each featuring rail, hotel, sightseeing, transfers and more. With one call, each journey can be customized with extra hotel nights or additional activities, upgrades in rail service and choice among 3-, 4-, and 5-star hotels. Travellers have the option to create tailor-made journeys with non-consecutive nights, allowing for maximum flexibility in planning – a benefit which 1 in 5 Australian guests with Railbookers utilize.
Agents can learn more about in Railbookers’ “Luxury Rail Journeys” e-brochure, while more information on Railbookers’ pre- and post-cruise itineraries can be found at https://www.railbookers.com.
Booking with Railbookers offers travelers a host of advantages, including:
- Unparalled knowledge from Rail Experts who know the best routes and connections, including luxury, scenic and overnight rail
- Receive instant quotes for trains, hotels, sightseeing, transfers and more in one call, connecting the dots to save time
- Flexible booking window from today to two years out across entire product selection
- Extensive product collection of customisable independent itineraries, including multi-country, multi-city, pre- and post-cruise, rail and sail, luxury, and more
- Hundreds of cruise extension trips that can add to an existing sailing
- 24/7 Emergency Line support from global staff to handle unplanned disruptions or issues that arise on trip
