As a lot of you will know, I was recently shortlisted as one of seven top UK Cruise Agents. I only found this out after numerous calls from Cruise Intl that I didn’t pay much attention to as I thought they were trying to sell me a magazine subscription!
I eventually called them back after a message was left with one of my colleagues to be told my lovely customers had been nominating me and I’d been shortlisted!
Then the voting began and so many of you kindly voted for me. I then had the invite to the awards ceremony which was to be held at The Ritz in London on 12th September. I ‘ummed’ and ‘ahhed’ about going as I thought there was no way I’d win (I was up against some fantastic competition), it was London (a pain to get to and not much fun to navigate when pregnant!) but eventually, Dave convinced me to go saying he’d drive, we’d park and get the underground. So off we went.
We arrived at The Ritz and were greeted with Champagne (water for me and Dave) and teeny, tiny sandwiches and macaroons. Very nice!
Then the ceremony began. There were lots of categories and the winners can be found at the bottom of this post.
We were towards the back of the room – I was quite happy there, taking it all in and minding my own business.
Then came the category for best cruise agent. ‘Highly commended’ was announced and then everything was a blur. Oz Clarke announced ‘And the winner is….Louise Thompson from Cruise.co.uk’. Dave said he’ll never forget my face when my name was called and I was immediately overwhelmed with emotion. Almost 20 years I’ve done this for and this was by far the highlight of my career so far! I went and collected my award in a daze, the photographer took pictures and then I wandered back to Dave. What had just happened??
I spent the rest of the afternoon saying to Dave ‘I won. I can’t believe I won.’
I still can’t believe I won. And I have to thank you all for this – I couldn’t and wouldn’t have done it without you. Thank you so much!
And here it is!!
I think it’ll take a while to sink in but I’m so grateful for every single vote 🙂
Lx
Contact me louiset@cruise.co.uk
Here are the other winners from the night:
Best Blogger
Gary Bembridge, Tips for Travellers – Winner
Danielle Fear, Cruise Miss – Highly Commended
Dave Monk, Shipmonk
Best Escorted & Specialist Tour Operator
Titan – Winner
Riviera Travel – Highly Commended
Kuoni
Planet Cruise
Saga Cruises
Viking Cruises
Best UK Port
Southampton – Winner
Liverpool – Highly Commended
Dover
Edinburgh
Portsmouth
Best Value for Money
Thomson Cruises – Winner
Saga Cruises – Highly Commended
MSC Cruises
P&O Cruises
Princess Cruises
Royal Caribbean International
Best Boutique Cruise Line
Azamara Club Cruises – Winner
Silversea – Highly Commended
Hapag-Lloyd Cruises
Oceania Cruises
Ponant
Seabourn
SeaDream Yacht Club
Viking Cruises
Best for Adventure
Silversea – Winner
Hapag-Lloyd Cruises – Highly Commended
Celebrity Cruises
Hurtigruten
One Ocean Expeditions
RMS St Helena
Best for First-Time Cruisers
Princess Cruises – Winner
P&O Cruises – Highly Commended
Carnival Cruise Line
Celebrity Cruises
Norwegian Cruise Line
Royal Caribbean International
Thomson Cruises
Best New Ship
AmaKristina
Silver Muse – Winner
Seabourn Encore – Highly Commended
S.S. Joie de Vivre
Viking Sky
Best Destination (Europe)
Dubrovnik – Winner
Norway – Highly Commended
Barcelona
Greece
Rome
Best Destination (World)
New Zealand – Winner
Barbados – Highly Commended
The Falkand Islands
Hawaii
Jamaica
Singapore
Sydney
Best Product or Service
Ultimate Balcony Dining by Princess Cruises – Winner
VIP Home Departure Service by Titan – Highly Commended
AzAmazing Evenings by Azamara Club Cruises
Jet Set Sail by Celebrity Cruises
MSC Yacht Club by MSC Cruises
Best for Enrichment
Saga Cruises – Winner
Holland America Line – Highly Commended
Azamara Club Cruises
Cunard
Hapag-Lloyd Cruises
Silversea
Viking Cruises
Voyages to Antiquity
Best for Wellbeing
Holland America Line – Winner
Oceania Cruises – Highly Commended
Norwegian Cruise Line
Regent Seven Seas Cruises
Viking Cruises
Best for Food
Oceania Cruises – Winner
Viking Cruises – Highly Commended
Hapag-Lloyd Cruises
Norwegian Cruise Line
Princess Cruises
P&O Cruises
Royal Caribbean International
Silversea
Best for Onboard Entertainment
Norwegian Cruise Line – Winner
Disney Cruise Line – Highly Commended
Princess Cruises
P&O Cruises
Royal Caribbean International
Best for Onboard Activities
Royal Caribbean International – Winner
Norwegian Cruise Line – Highly Commended
Disney Cruise Line
Princess Cruises
P&O Cruises
Best for Families
Disney Cruise Line – Winner
Royal Caribbean International – Highly Commended
Carnival Cruise Line
Princess Cruises
P&O Cruises
Best Cruise Agent
Louise Thompson, Cruise.co.uk – Winner
Jane Chadwick, Go Cruise with Jane – Highly Commended
Carole Sandler, Go Cruise
Cruise Agent Lifetime Achievement Award
Giles Hawke, CEO, Cosmos Tours and Cruises and Avalon Waterways UK – Winner
Michael Wilson, Managing Director, Bolsover Cruise Club – Highly Commended
Amanda Middler, Silversea
Outstanding Contribution to the Cruise Industry
Manfredi Lefebvre d’Ovidio, Chairman, Silversea
Best Luxury River Cruise Line
Viking River Cruises – Winner
Uniworld Boutique River Cruise Collection – Highly Commended
Ama Waterways
Avalon Waterways
Scenic
Best Luxury Cruise Line
Seabourn – Winner
Regent Seven Seas Cruises – Highly Commended
Celebrity Cruises
Oceania Cruises
Silversea
Viking Cruises
Best River Cruise Line
Viking River Cruises – Winner
Riviera Travel – Highly Commended
Avalon Waterways
Emerald Waterways
Scenic
Uniworld Boutique River Cruise Collection
Best Cruise Line
Princess Cruises – Winner
P&O Cruises – Highly Commended
Celebrity Cruises
Cunard
Norwegian Cruise Line
Oceania Cruises
Royal Caribbean International
Saga Cruises
Silversea
Viking Cruises