FCCA Travel and Cruise Magazine – 3rd Quarter 2025

In the fast-paced world of cruise tourism, one thing is certain: no two days are ever the same, and the greatest opportunity we have is to deliver a memorable guest experience. Whether it’s an unexpected operational hiccup, a new guest trend, or a changing port dynamic — the landscape is constantly shifting.

At Aquila, that’s exactly where we thrive. Because we don’t just teach cruise tourism — we live it. We call our approach the Living Lab, and it’s the engine behind everything we do. This mindset is what fuels our passion for helping destinations, tour operators, and cruise lines raise the bar of excellence.

Our Living Lab is rooted in real-world cruise operations — our own, right here in the Port of Saint John, Canada. Each season, our team welcomes over 60,000 cruise guests on tours, working with all the major cruise lines, managing tours, navigating logistics, and engaging directly with visitors from around the world. It’s our day-to-day operations that provide the constant stream of learning, testing, and refining that fuels the expertise we share with destinations, tour operators, and cruise industry partners globally.

Learning in Real Time

The Living Lab isn’t a controlled environment — it’s a dynamic, real-world space where we roll up our sleeves and face the same challenges every destination and tour operator encounters. And because of that, our insights don’t come from textbooks or theories — they come from experience.

When a tour doesn’t go as planned, when a guest shares feedback that surprises us, when a new operational hurdle presents itself — those become the seeds of new learning. We reflect, we adapt, and then we bring those lessons into the training room, the coaching session, or the consulting engagement.

It means that when we share a solution, a best practice, or a strategy — it’s been tested. It’s lived. It’s real.

From Experience to Expertise

What makes the Living Lab unique is that it’s not just about internal improvement. It’s about using what we experience every day to help others strengthen their own cruise offerings. When cruise guests disembark, they’re not just stepping onto a dock — they’re stepping into the identity of a destination. That identity is shaped not just by scenery, but by service. By storytelling. By the sense of welcome they feel the moment they arrive.

When a destination asks us how to better align the guest experience from ship to shore, we can answer from firsthand knowledge — because we’ve walked that path ourselves. When a tour operator wants to improve guide engagement or product quality, we can share not just techniques, but stories from the frontlines of our own teams.

This creates a virtuous cycle of experience and expertise — where every season in the Lab adds to the depth of knowledge we bring to our clients.

Building a Community of Practice

But perhaps the most rewarding aspect of the Living Lab is the way it helps us foster a broader community of practice across the cruise industry.

We don’t believe in holding knowledge close. We believe in sharing what we learn, in creating spaces where destinations, tour operators, port authorities, and cruise lines can come together to exchange ideas, tackle shared challenges, and elevate the guest experience for everyone.

Whether it’s through our training programs like the ACE Tour Operator Designation, our service assessments, or our custom coaching, our goal is to amplify expertise across the industry.

We’ve hosted Best Practice Missions where clients visit us to see the Living Lab in action, and we’ve conducted Reverse Best Practice Missions where we go to our partners’ destinations to observe, listen, and coach based on their specific realities. Each of these experiences strengthens the community and deepens collective understanding.

Small Shifts, Big Learning

The Living Lab has taught us that big transformations often start with small shifts. Sometimes, it’s a change in how a guide tells a story. Other times, it’s rethinking how guests are greeted when they step off the ship.

Because we’re living it every day, we notice these small shifts — and we help others see them too.

We encourage our partners to:

  • Stay curious: Every day presents an opportunity to learn something new about guest expectations.
  • Empower their teams: The frontline can offer incredible insights if we’re willing to listen. Train not just for skills, but for confidence, storytelling, and emotional intelligence. When your people feel seen and valued, guests will too.
  • Create spaces to reflect: What worked well? What could be better? Reflection is where growth begins.
  • Share successes: When we celebrate what’s working, we inspire others to try it too.

The Human Element in an Evolving Industry

While technology continues to advance in the cruise sector, our Living Lab reminds us that the human element remains at the heart of great tourism. It’s the stories told, the smiles exchanged, the authentic connections made that guests remember most.

And it’s in those human moments — often fleeting, always meaningful — where real excellence is built.

Let’s Aquilafy the Future

At Aquila, we’ve embraced the term Aquilafying — our way of turning operational lessons into meaningful learning that can uplift others. Through our Living Lab, we’re not just observing the industry — we’re in it, growing with it, and sharing the journey with all who want to evolve alongside us.

To our fellow FCCA and CLIA members: we invite you to think of your own operations as a living lab. Stay curious. Stay open. Share what you learn.

Because together, as a community of practice, we can continue to raise the standard of cruise tourism — not just for today, but for the future we’re all creating.

 Beth Hatt is the Founder of the Aquila Center for Cruise Excellence, the FCCA’s exclusive training partner, with over 40 years in business. For more information about our programs and initiatives, reach out to Beth@CruiseExcellence.com or see www.cruiseexcellence.com