As part of the company’s commitment to strengthen its global sourcing and distribution, Norwegian Cruise Line has appointed Eamonn Ferrin as vice president and managing director for its UK, Ireland, Israel, South Africa and the Middle East markets.

He will report directly to Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings’ president international, Harry Sommer.

Ferrin will oversee the sales, marketing, public relations and office operations for Norwegian Cruise Line, heading up the key regions of the UK and Ireland as well as the growing and developing markets of Israel, South Africa and the Middle East. Reporting to Ferrin will be Nick Wilkinson, who will take on a newly created role as regional vice president of Business Development for Norwegian Cruise Line.

“Eamonn’s appointment comes at an exciting time in our company’s history as we continue to strengthen our global footprint,” said Sommer. “The UK is our second largest source market globally, and Israel, South Africa and the Middle East are emerging markets that demonstrate enormous growth potential. Eamonn brings more than 20 years of senior-level experience in the travel and hospitality industry, and having him lead our operations in some of our most important international markets is a testament to our global growth strategy.”

Prior to joining Norwegian Cruise Line, Ferrin was the founder of Ferrin Consulting Limited, providing consultancy services to travel brands in the airline, tour operator, cruise and hotel industries. In his last consultancy assignment, he was the interim chief operating officer at Cruise.co.uk, the largest private equity-owned European cruise online travel agency (OTA). From February 2013 to May 2016, Ferrin was president and chief operating officer at Air Canada Vacations (ACV), where he oversaw the daily business operations and was instrumental in the company achieving record operating profits and, in supporting the growth of the company’s new leisure-focused airline, Air Canada Rouge. From November 2009 to October 2012, Ferrin served as managing director at the Hotel Breaks Division at Holidaybreak, where he supported Cox & Kings' acquisition of Holidaybreak in 2011. Before that, he held various C-Suite and senior leadership roles within the travel and hospitality sector. - TradeArabia News Service