My Year at Sea: From Kitchen Table to Cruise Stars

Where it all began

On 1 July 2025, I opened the doors to Holidays by Vivian. There was no shop front, just a laptop, a homeschool timetable on the fridge and a head full of cruise ships.

I wanted to build something personal: a travel business where every client is looked after like family, and every holiday is planned with real care. I hoped it would grow. I never imagined how much would happen in such a short time.

This year I have sailed on brand-new ships, toured some of the most beautiful vessels at sea, flown to China with Royal Caribbean, appeared on the cover of Travel Weekly and been shortlisted for not one, not two, but three Cruise Stars awards. Here is the story of my year so far.

Becoming an ambassador

One of the proudest parts of my year has been becoming an ambassador for cruise lines I truly love. I am an ambassador for MSC Cruises and Azamara, and a Royal Caribbean Social Ambassador.

For me, being an ambassador is not about a title. It means I have been on board, asked the questions and seen the ships with my own eyes, so I can give my clients honest, first-hand advice. It also means sharing that experience with you through my Instagram and TikTok, so you can picture yourself on board before you book.

A year on board

If there is one thing I believe, it is that you cannot truly recommend a ship until you have stepped on board. This year I have been lucky enough to experience an incredible range of cruise lines.

It all started with my very first FAM trip, on board MSC Seaview in the MSC Yacht Club. Experiencing that exclusive "ship within a ship", with its private lounge, restaurant and butler service, showed me just how special cruising can be, and I have been hooked ever since.

Sailings

• Norwegian Luna in March, where I joined the inaugural sailing of NCL's newest ship
• Azamara Quest in May, on a CLIA Masterclass at Sea that showed me why boutique cruising is booming
• Legend of the Seas, Royal Caribbean's newest Icon Class ship, on her preview sailing. I fell in love with her straight away

Ship visits

• Iona with P&O Cruises
• Brilliant Lady with Virgin Voyages
• Queen Mary 2 with Cunard
• Statendam with Holland America Line
• Marina with Oceania Cruises

Every ship has its own personality, from the timeless elegance of Queen Mary 2 to the adults-only energy of Virgin Voyages and the destination-focused luxury of Oceania and Azamara. Seeing them all side by side means I can match each client to the ship that truly suits them, not just the one that is easiest to sell.

Facing my fears, on the big screen

One of the proudest moments of my year happened at an event I was not even at. Ahead of the CLIA Cruise Conference 2026, David Siewers, Azamara's Chief Sales Officer, International, got in touch with a favour. Dondra Ritzenthaler, CEO of Azamara, was giving a motivational keynote on how travel agents need to think like Olympians, and they wanted to feature me.

One of Dondra's pillars was Face Your Fears. David and Stu had seen my video interviews, and knew that being in front of the camera as an interviewer is not the most comfortable thing for me. I do it anyway, and they wanted to share that with the room, using a still from my video with Lucy.

Kind colleagues sent me photos of the moment I appeared on screen. Dondra, who received the CLIA Hall of Fame Lifetime Achievement Award this year and is famous for her "lion's mentality", is someone I hugely admire, so being highlighted in her keynote meant the world. It is a reminder that the things that scare us are often the things most worth doing.

October: a month to remember

Legend of the Seas with my family

After falling for Legend of the Seas on her preview sailing, I booked my own family on board. From 4 to 11 October we sailed from Barcelona to Palma, Marseille, La Spezia, Rome and Naples. Watching my children explore the ship was pure joy, and she is now officially their favourite ship too.

Fortune Awaits 2.0: China and Japan

Just days later, I was off again. I won a place on Royal Caribbean's Fortune Awaits 2.0 trip, run with Travel Weekly. From 16 to 24 October I spent four days in Shanghai, hosted by Ben, President of Royal Caribbean Asia, followed by four days on Spectrum of the Seas with a stop in Sasebo, Japan.

As someone of Chinese heritage who already books clients on trips to China, this one meant so much to me. To top it off, I appeared on the cover of Travel Weekly as part of the Fortune Awaits coverage. Seeing my face on the front of an industry magazine I have read every week since becoming a travel agent was a real pinch-me moment.

Cruising with the home ed community

As a homeschooling mum myself, one of the things closest to my heart is our home education cruise community. It has grown to around 170 families in our Facebook group, with its own website at homeed.holidaysbyvivian.com.

In May, seven families sailed together on our first home ed group cruise, to Norway on MSC Virtuosa. Seeing the children learn, explore and make friends at sea was everything I hoped for. Even better, the friendships did not end when we got off the ship. Families have since met up for picnics and days out, including a trip to the Natural History Museum in London, and watching the children reunite has been wonderful.

Our next home ed cruise sails on Odyssey of the Seas from Rome in May 2027 around the Greek Isles, and I am already planning an Asia worldschooling cruise for the future.

Three Cruise Stars shortlistings

Then came the email I will never forget. Then another. Then a third.

Holidays by Vivian has been shortlisted in three categories at the Cruise Stars 2026 awards, run by Cruise Trade News:

• Travel Agent Rising Star of the Year
• New to Cruise Star Champion
• Homeworking Star of the Year

I am one of only three people across the whole agent shortlist to be named in three categories, and I still cannot quite believe it, especially after being shortlisted for New to Cruise Extraordinaire just last year. The winners will be announced at the Cruise Stars luncheon at the De Vere Grand Connaught Rooms in London on Friday 11 December, and I will be there with my fingers firmly crossed.

The people who made this year

If I am honest, the trips and the headlines are not what I will remember most. It is the people.

This year I sat down for a Q&A with Luke Smith from Crystal (which, I am still kicking myself, I forgot to record!). I sailed with Dondra on Azamara, and met David, who has been so supportive and also took the time to sit down with me for a Q&A. And on Fortune Awaits, I travelled to China with Ben, President of Royal Caribbean Asia.

Two people I will always be especially grateful for are Danielle Weller, my BDM at MSC Cruises, and Claire Smith, Head of Trade Support. They were the very first people in the industry to invite me on a FAM trip, to the MSC Yacht Club on MSC Seaview, and they believed in me from that very first moment. We have stayed in touch ever since, and they have never stopped hyping me up. It was Danielle who invited me to Travel Weekly's Agent Achievement Awards in July, and the fact that she thought of me still means so much.

To every BDM, every cruise line team, every trade journalist and every colleague who has answered my questions, cheered me on and opened doors for me this year: you know who you are, and I am so grateful. There are far too many of you to name, which says everything about how lucky I have been.

And a very special thank you to Kat, my BDM at The Good Travel Agent and my biggest hype girl. I honestly do not know what I would have done without her.

From a Princess Cruises baking workshop in London to sitting among the very best agents in the country at the AAAs, I have been welcomed into rooms I never imagined I would be in.

Building these relationships matters to me just as much as building relationships with my clients, because, really, I do it for my clients. The better I know the people behind each cruise line, the better I understand their ships, their strengths and what makes them different. That means when you come to me, I am not just reading a brochure. I can pick up the phone to someone who knows the product inside out, get the right answers, and match you to the holiday that is genuinely right for you.

I have often felt small in this industry. Just one homeworking mum in a very big world, surrounded by people I really look up to. So to have been given this much time, support and opportunity by people at the very top of cruising is something I will never take for granted.

My uncle once taught me that opportunity comes to those who are prepared. I have lived by that my whole life. I have spent years learning, training and getting ready, and when the opportunities came this year, I grabbed them with both hands. Or should I say, it was all hands on deck.

Thank you, and what comes next

None of this would have happened without you. To every client who trusted me with their precious time away, every friend who passed on my name, and everyone who has liked, shared and cheered me on: thank you, from the bottom of my heart.

A huge thank you too to The Good Travel Agent, to CLIA, to Cruise Trade News, and to every cruise line partner and BDM who has supported me along the way.

And the adventure is not slowing down. Next up, I am heading to Cancun and the Riviera Maya with Hyatt Inclusive Collection, followed by a family trip through Asia. As always, I will be sharing everything I learn so I can help you plan your own perfect holiday.

Dreaming of your first cruise, or your next one? Get in touch or send me a message on Instagram with the word GUIDE for my free Cruise Matchmaker Guide. I would love to help you find the ship that is perfect for you.

Vivian x