CLIA inducts cruise industry veteran to Hall of Fame
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Virtuoso’s vice president of cruise sales is the latest inductee into the Cruise Lines International Association’s (CLIA) Cruise Industry Hall of Fame.
Bill Smith, a 44-year industry veteran, was presented with the CLIA Lifetime Achievement Award on June 2 during the organisation’s Cruise360 conference in Vancouver, British Columbia.
The Lifetime Achievement Award is given to an individual from the cruise industry who advocates for cruise travel and has made remarkable positive contributions to the industry. CLIA members and committee leaders nominated and voted on winners earlier this year.
“Bill has been an invaluable part of our community and CLIA is honoured to present him with the Lifetime Achievement Award,” said Cindy D’Aoust, president and CEO, CLIA. “He now sits among a list of distinguished leaders and represents the best of the best of CLIA cruise industry leaders.”
“I am tremendously excited to join the incredible community of outstanding colleagues who have won this award in the past,” Smith said.
In his more than four decades in travel, Smith has also held executive roles at some of the industry’s most prominent companies: Crystal Cruises, Silversea Cruises, Costa Cruise Line, Princess Cruises and Eastern Airlines.
During his five years at Virtuoso, Smith has helped drive growth in Virtuoso’s cruise division, a key segment of the organization’s product portfolio. He has been instrumental in Virtuoso’s significant increase in cruise production, and added six new suppliers to the programme. Most recently, Smith was involved in the rebranding and expansion of Virtuoso Voyages, the company’s flagship cruise enhancement programme.
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