Cruise tourism & innovation

Innovation management is arguably essential for the profitability and growth sustainability of the cruise industry; as it is for most areas of business endeavour. Now, more than ever, the cruise sector is faced with significant challenges, including: safety and industry reputation in the aftermath of the Costa Concordia disaster, al larger competitive scope and diminishing profit margins. Given that innovation management can be perceived as a management attitude and cultural habit, fostering inspiration is just as relevant as delivering innovation methodologies and guidelines. On this basis, the aim of this combined conference proceedings is to provide a creativity impulse and to illustrate the breadth and potential of innovation management in the cruise sector. Sources on inspiration include: mobile information and communication technologies, multimedia, and the internet and focus on areas as diverse as safety, aesthetics, culture and professional education.