Carnival Cuts, Your Data & AI Taking Over Cruising | Simon Calder Uncensored

Travel expert and journalist Simon Calder joins us for a wide-ranging and completely uncensored conversation about the cruise industry, the future of travel, Carnival UK, artificial intelligence, passenger data and some of the biggest issues facing holidaymakers today.

Few people have spent as much time travelling, reporting on travel and scrutinising the industry as Simon. So, with cruising continuing to change at an extraordinary pace, we wanted to know what he really thinks about where the industry is heading.

We discuss the restructuring taking place at Carnival UK and the prospect of job losses. Is this simply a business adapting to a changing world, or should passengers question cost-cutting at a time when the cruise industry is enjoying enormous demand? Simon also explains the fundamental responsibility major companies have to their shareholders and what that means for the decisions passengers ultimately experience onboard.

We also ask a much bigger question: is cruising actually better than it has ever been? Ships are getting bigger, choice has exploded and millions of people are taking cruise holidays, but does a bigger and more profitable industry necessarily mean a better experience for passengers?

Then there's data. After submitting a Subject Access Request, we discovered just how much information had been retained about us, including records stretching all the way back to 2008. How much information do travel companies hold about their customers? Should we be more concerned about how that information is collected and used? And do most of us really understand how much of our lives now exist within corporate databases?

Artificial intelligence also enters the conversation. AI is already beginning to change how we book holidays, research destinations, communicate with companies and work. Could it eventually transform huge parts of the travel industry? Should we be worried about where the technology is heading? Simon has a rather relaxed attitude towards the prospect – we're considerably less relaxed!

We also get into the wider state of travel and cruising, how the industry has changed, what passengers should be questioning and what the next few years could look like.

In this episode:
• Carnival UK restructuring and expected job losses
• Cruise companies, profits and shareholder responsibility
• Whether cruising really is better than ever
• What travel companies know about their customers
• Our Subject Access Request and data stretching back to 2008
• Privacy and the increasing use of customer data
• Artificial intelligence and the future of travel
• Whether AI is something travellers should genuinely worry about
• How technology could change holidays and the travel industry
• The changing cruise experience
• Simon Calder's perspective after decades reporting on travel
• Where cruising and travel could be heading next

Simon Calder is one of Britain's best-known travel journalists and broadcasters, regularly reporting on aviation, rail, cruising, tourism and consumer travel issues. In this extended interview, we're able to go beyond the headlines and have a proper conversation about an industry that affects millions of travellers every year.

💬 JOIN THE CONVERSATION
Do you think cruising is better today than it was ten or twenty years ago?
Are cruise companies becoming too focused on shareholders and profitability?
And how concerned are you about the amount of personal data companies hold – or the rapid development of AI?

Let us know what you think in the comments.

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ADDENDUM: The views and opinions expressed in this video are those of the individuals speaking and are based on their own experiences and perspectives. We always encourage viewers to undertake their own independent research and consider what is right for them before booking any cruise holiday.