Carnival Cruise Line has long touted the value of using a travel advisor when booking a cruise vacation, and now that commitment is being intensified through a yearlong initiative called WUATA: Why Use A Travel Advisor. Aimed at helping travel professionals attract new clients and deepen the loyalty of existing clients, WUATA is a multifaceted program with special events that bring clients and industry experts together to promote the travel agent community.

Carnival’s Why Use A Travel Advisor program will feature a WUATA Party (a wordplay on What-A Party) in four cities, social media promotions, contests, exclusive merchandise, giveaways, text alerts and WUATA Word, an innovative crowdsourced word cloud that will grow throughout the year as the movement expands. Easy-to-use tools are available on GoCCL.com to help travel advisors spread the word to existing and potential clients.

“The proof is in my tattoo that Carnival is deeply committed to the travel agent community, and by introducing WUATA we’ll be able to share our passion so travelers gain a comprehensive understanding of the benefits of using a travel advisor,” said Adolfo Perez, Carnival’s senior vice president of sales and trade marketing. “Through WUATA, Carnival becomes the first cruise line to dedicate a yearlong campaign focused solely on promoting the value of travel advisors, and we’re excited to get on the road to support the growth and success of our agent partners.”

Carnival will host WUATA Parties in Orlando, Florida, May 8; Minneapolis, Minnesota, July 24; New York Sept. 8; and Los Angeles Oct. 29. Carnival’s WUATA Parties will be hosted by Perez along with Carnival sales executives and business development managers. John Heald, the line’s popular brand ambassador and blogger, also will be at the Orlando event.

For each WUATA Party, travel advisors will invite a current client to attend who is encouraged to bring a “not-yet-a-client” along for a fun and informative experience. Each WUATA Party will feature remarks from Ann Chamberlin, president of the American Society of Travel Advisors and Charles Sylvia, vice president, membership and trade relations, for Cruise Lines International Association.  WUATA parties will also feature stories from Carnival Diamond guests and their personal travel advisors. Each event will include a drawing for one seven-day balcony cruise for a consumer winner plus commission for that guest’s travel advisor.  All Consumer guests will receive an exclusive Carnival offer of a three-category stateroom upgrade and Travel Advisors will participate in drawings for gifts from CLIA and ASTA. To register for a WUATA Party, travel advisors can visit GoCCL.com.

WUATA Word is a yearlong initiative that invites travel advisors and their clients to choose a single word that describes why using a travel advisor is beneficial. Once submitted online at www.WUATAWord.com, the word will join an always-growing digital word cloud. The WUATA Word cloud will be displayed at WUATA Parties and on GoCCL.com.

Clients and travel advisors can opt-in to receive text alerts from the WUATA program throughout the year by texting “Yes” to 1-866-Go-WUATA (469-8282). The alerts make it convenient to receive updates on new WUATA features and tools added throughout the year, as well as learn about the latest news, contests, offers and participation opportunities that spread the WUATA message.

For additional information about Carnival Cruise Line call 1-800-327-9501 (individual) or 1-800-327-5782 (groups) or visit the line’s travel agent Internet portal, GoCCL.com. Carnival can also be found on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.

Journalists also can visit Carnival’s media site, Carnival-news.com or follow the line’s PR department on Twitter attwitter.com/CarnivalPR.