It’s no secret that river cruising has seen explosive growth. Still, Matthew Shollar believes he has found a niche within that segment that has tremendous potential and offers significant opportunities for travel advisors.
It’s a charter-only cruise line he founded called Transcend Cruises which Shollar calls “the only B2B cruise line.”
Although river cruising is already a $5 billion business, said Shollar, the potential for charter-only is many times that amount because it can be seen as an alternative to the massive meetings and events market. While the company has already been in the market with a leased vessel branded Advance by Transcend (formerly operated by Crystal), it will have its own custom-built ships in mid-2025 with more to come after that.
All ships will be built for the group market and each one will have 60 identical oversized cabins and every pair of cabins can be converted to a full suite. There are multiple spaces on board where all guests can gather at once and the restaurant is set up to be a group space. Food can be served in eight locations on board.
The target markets are diverse and include MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and expositions), nonprofits and leisure segments like destination weddings and milestone celebrations.
The advantages for clients, said Shollar, who has been involved in the luxury cruise market for many years, is that there is no set schedule (except for a three-night minimum) and all itineraries are customized so that a sailing could be roundtrip, or an unusual length like 17 nights or other options not available in the market. This flexibility, said Shollar, enables Transcend to dock at less visited places that are less touristed.
A proprietary food and beverage program allows for flexibility as well: a family-style meal one night, a pop-up another and a restaurant ashore on the third. Transcend’s gastronomic offerings will be rooted in European culinary and wine traditions with a chef-driven restaurant and speakeasy bar/lounge experience. There will be a mixologist and sommelier onboard.
Transcend has a strong wellness component. Each ship will house a 2,600-square-foot indoor/outdoor fitness, spa and guest wellness facility—the largest and most comprehensive, said Shollar, of any river cruising vessel.
The company also aims to be as sustainable as possible with a low-emission main engine, the latest in garbage disposal systems and many “circular” sustainable products used in construction.
Travel advisor sharing information. (photo via South_agency / getty images)
For advisors, said Shollar, “we erase all pain points.” In addition, instead of dictating a commission, he said “We facilitate their marking up the cost and billing clients as they see fit. We encourage advisors to charge what they think is appropriate.”
He is interested in talking to retail agencies to discuss new revenue streams and to help them grow their businesses. He said the line already has signed charter contacts into 2027 with some multi-year clients and others with multiple departures. He is aiming to add two ships a year for the foreseeable future.
The first question he asks a potential client, said Shollar, is: “Who is the group onboard and what are they aiming to achieve?” He said Transcend reverses the usual conversation from: “Here is what we have—you can see if anything fits” to “What do you want to create?” The entire ship can be branded for corporate guests with signage, digital display and other tools.
Thousands of advisors who sell groups are in effect already in the charter business, said Shollar. One sales pitch they could use for their customers is that instead of their client fighting crowds at a convention hotel or resort, they can have an entire ship to themselves.
Shollar sums it up: “We are introducing a new category to the industry with wellness-enabled, luxurious river cruising venues, providing unmatched support to our clients, all while expanding the market to audiences that typically have only considered hotels and resorts.”
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