Variety Cruises is putting fresh commercial weight behind Australia and New Zealand. The independent small-ship line has created a National Business Development Manager role for the region. Its aim is clear: turn rising demand into long-term sales growth.
The family-owned company dates back to 1949. Today it operates eight boutique ships carrying just 34 to 72 guests. Its current program reaches Greece, Tahiti and French Polynesia, the Seychelles, Cape Verde, Italy and Malta, Croatia and Montenegro, and West Africa.
That small scale is central to the brand. It lets the ships reach islands, bays, and ports beyond the practical reach of much larger vessels. In a cruise world often built around bigger ships, Variety Cruises is betting that smaller can sell just as strongly.
Australia and New Zealand are now a bigger part of that plan. The new Australia-based BDM will focus on distribution, trade relationships and new business. The brief covers FIT, groups, charters and special-interest travel.
“We are seeing very strong momentum from Australia and New Zealand, and the opportunity now is to convert that into sustained market growth,” said Variety Cruises Chief Commercial Officer Malvina Vonta. “There is already a solid foundation in place. The next phase is about broadening distribution, strengthening the right partnerships, increasing passenger volumes and building a more meaningful long-term position for Variety Cruises across the region.”
That is a clear brief. Grow the trade base. Win new accounts. Help more agents understand the product. Then turn that reach into bookings. It is sales work, but also brand work. In a crowded cruise market, both matter.
For travel sellers, that means more direct contact with the cruise line. The successful candidate will work with travel advisors, agency networks, wholesalers, tour operators and strategic partners. Trade training, webinars, roadshows, events and familiarisation trips will also form part of the job.
The timing has another useful tailwind: air access to Tahiti.
Air Tahiti Nui is scheduled to begin nonstop Sydney–Papeete flights from 15 December 2026. The airline plans two services a week. For Australian travellers, that removes the need to route via another international hub on those departures. It also gives agents a simpler way to package Variety Cruises’ French Polynesia product.
“With direct flights to Tahiti now opening up new potential for the Australian market, alongside the continued strength of Greece, we have two highly relevant destination platforms to build around. Combined with the strong upturn we are already seeing, this gives us a very clear commercial opportunity in the region.”
Greece remains another major pillar. Variety Cruises has deep roots there and continues to build much of its small-ship identity around the Greek islands. Tahiti, meanwhile, gives the brand a strong Pacific story that is likely to become easier to sell once the new Sydney flights begin.
The company describes its philosophy as “small is our luxury”. The idea is simple enough. Fewer guests can mean easier access, less crowding and more time close to the destination. For advisors, it also offers a clear point of difference from large-ship cruising.
The new BDM will also chase less traditional business. Variety Cruises says the role will focus on affinity groups, associations, universities, conservation groups, and other special-interest communities. That opens the door to themed journeys and higher-value group sales.
“This is a market with clear headroom and a strong trajectory. The opportunity is to join at the point where there is already momentum, but still significant scope to shape how the market develops over the coming years.”
The message to the trade is plain. Variety wants to grow here, and it wants to do so with local support. That should make the brand easier to reach, easier to explain and, if the plan works, easier to book.
So this is more than another name in the industry’s BDM directory. Variety Cruises is putting a dedicated commercial presence into a region it sees as important to its next phase of growth.
Applications are open for the National Business Development Manager – Australia & New Zealand role. The position is based in Australia and reports to the Chief Commercial Officer. Please send a CV and brief introduction to [email protected].
By: Octavia Koo – © 2026.
Read Time: 3 minutes.
Author Bio:
Octavia Koo arrived in Australia in the early eighties with little fuss and a good eye. Sydney suited her. At UNSW, she studied Arts, then found her footing in graphic design before drifting, quite naturally, into the digital side of things, building websites and shaping words that made people want to stay.
Singapore followed, and with it, the fast pace of tourism platforms and ITB Asia. Long before SEO became a buzzword, Octavia understood how stories travelled online. That’s where she met Stephen, and the seed for something more was planted.
A few years later, she joined Global Travel Media.
Today, Octavia works with quiet assurance, blending art, instinct and experience to produce stories that don’t shout; they simply work and linger.
