Matthew Upchurch, chairman and CEO of Virtuoso, the luxury travel network, talks with James Shillinglaw of Insider Travel Report about the 37th Virtuoso Travel Week, held in Las Vegas last week. Upchurch also details his thoughts about how Virtuoso has evolved over the years and its new structure. He gives his view where luxury travel advisors are today and the state of the industry. For more information, visit www.virtuoso.com. 

River cruising is expanding its reach to attract new markets, engage a more active customer, develop new destinations, and offer longer cruises. This panel of river cruise experts examines the latest new products and services, as well as the newest destinations on the rivers of the world. Our river cruise experts also tell you how your clients can visit familiar rivers in a completely new way. They detail how you can better sell river cruising to a new generation of customers. James Shillinglaw of Insider Travel Report moderates a panel with Marilyn Conroy, executive vice president business development for Riviera Travel, Steven Simao, vice president of sales for Century Cruises, and Rob Huffman, director of field sales-USA for AmaWaterways.

Big ship, midsize ship, small ship, boutique ship. Cruise ships are getting larger and more intricate, with even more stateroom categories, dining options, activities, new technology and even dedicated island or beach destinations that guests can visit. They are getting more boutique and specialized and also more luxurious and destination focused. This Virtual Roadshow-Selling Cruises panel looks at how you can sell each category of ship. James Shillinglaw of Insider Travel Report moderates this panel featuring John Diorio, vice president and managing director-North America for Celestyal; Anthony Meloro, director of business development support, trade and host travel partner relations for Royal Caribbean International; and Darren Dolan, director of business development for Viking.

We interview Cruise Planners, one of the top cruise-selling agencies in the business today to find out the keys to their success. Michelle Fee, founder and CEO, and Theresa Scalzitti, chief operating officer, detail the history of their more than 30-year-old travel agency, which began by selling mostly cruises and has evolved into one of the largest sellers of travel in the business with more than $1 billion sales per year. For more information, visit www.cruiseplanners.com or www.cruiseplannersfranchise.com. 

Liz Biden of The Royal Portfolio talks with Michaela Guzy of Insider Travel Report about how she transformed her family’s holiday homes into a collection of luxury properties across South Africa. Biden shares the stories behind each hotel, her creative process, her commitment to art, sustainability and community development, and her plans to expand into Victoria Falls. For more information, visit www.theroyalportfolio.com. 

Colm O’Brien, general manager of L’Auberge de Sedona, talks with James Shillinglaw of Insider Travel Report about the renovation of this boutique Arizona resort, which just joined Small Luxury Hotels of the World. From newly renovated rooms to Creekside restaurants, this is the perfect retreat for couples interested in natural surroundings and the spectacular setting of Sedona. For more information, visit www.lauberge.com. 

David Chait, founder & CEO of travel tech firm Travefy, talks with James Shillinglaw of Insider Travel Report about the products and services his company has developed for travel advisors. Specifically, Travefy has just introduced a new CRM Suite for advisors that includes invoicing, commission tracking, integrated email and a contact management system in one unified workspace. For more information, visit www.travefy.com. 

Farah Barhorst, director-onboard revenue for Holland America Line, talks with James Shillinglaw of Insider Travel Report about the return of the behind-the-scenes ship tour. For a price, guests can now get a comprehensive tour of their Holland America ship, going from the bridge down to the laundry rooms, food storage areas, recycling centers and more. For more information, visit www.hollandamerica.com. 

Catherine Powell, the new CEO of AmaWaterways, talks with James Shillinglaw of Insider Travel Report about her new role, her background and her plans for the luxury river cruise line going forward. Powell tells us about her first river cruises on AmaWaterways, her impressions of the product and how she intends to keep working with the travel agency distribution system to sell her company’s river cruises. For more information, visit www.amawaterways.com.