Tom Stieghorst
Avalon Waterways has debuted a new advertising campaign under the slogan "This Is How You Europe."
The spots do the conventional. They highlight the desirable features of an Avalon river cruise set against backgrounds depicting passengers enjoying their cabins, the cuisine and the water views from the line's Panorama Suites.
For an average viewer, the ads are about Avalon.
But for anyone versed in the river cruise industry, including many travel sellers, the ads do something additional. They appear to allude to Avalon's biggest competitor.
Almost the first image we see in the spot is a conical metal helmet with pointed animal horns attached to each side. It's the kind of helmet traditionally worn by a ... Viking.
A hurly-burly of running fighters gives way to a quiet battlefield and a single, bearded warrior toting a battle axe. It's Graham McTavish, the Scottish actor who has appeared in previous Avalon commercials. He's clad in a cape and what might be chain-mail armor, his bare arms smudged with soot.
"You're telling me that in the future," McTavish's character says in a Scottish brogue, "there's going to be ships on the river. That I can get on. And there'll be big rooms, with beds. Actual beds.
"And it's not jammed full of people," McTavish says in another scene, trying to jostle his way through a pack of brawny fighters tramping in the opposite direction, "so there's plenty of space.
"And then, when I stop, I can choose the way to explore. I can do anything I want to do. Not what I have to do," McTavish says with a rueful shake of his head. "Seriously," he concludes, "this is going to be a thing?"
"Well, not with every river cruise line," says a female voice-over, as the images shift to depict scenes of guests enjoying an Avalon cruise. She says Avalon has "fewer guests" and that they can decide how to make every destination "come to life." (Avalon's Suite Ships carry a maximum of 166 guests, as opposed to 190 on Viking Longships.)
The ad closes with warrior McTavish surveying a smoking battlefield. McTavish sighs. "Vikings," he mutters.
Asked whether the ads reference one of Avalon's competitors, Steve Born, chief marketing officer for the Globus family of brands, which includes Avalon, did not answer directly.
"Avalon has a lot to be confident about," Born said in a statement. "We've gone to great lengths to elevate our ship design with a focus on space and views and the land experience with a wide range of excursions for a broader range of cruisers.
"We're proud of that difference, and ensuring that the Avalon brand is recognized for this difference among travelers and advisors is an ongoing opportunity," Born said.
In many ways, Avalon and other river cruise companies are fighting an uphill battle for attention against the marketing juggernaut of Viking. Accounting for 51% of the capacity in the North American outbound river market, Viking Holdings in its financial statements estimates that it has more than four times the brand awareness of its nearest competitor.
Viking's sponsorship of the PBS series "Masterpiece Theater" has its name on the lips of millions of American viewers. In the past 30 days, Viking TV commercials have aired 777 times, according to iSpot.TV, a Bellevue, Wash., ad-measurement firm.
So, it's understandable if Viking's competitors opt to stir up some controversy in order to break through.
In a statement, Viking said it is most concerned about its own operations but added that its Longships differ from other river vessels because they have three full decks, compared to two-and-a-half decks on competitors.
"Our signature square bow creates extra space and allows our Viking Longships to host more guests, which ultimately means we can provide great service at a better value," Viking said.
Avalon's spots, which were created by the Denver ad agency Xuma, began airing Nov. 11 on digital media, including streaming applications like Peacock, Hulu, HBO Max, Discovery+ and ESPN.