After more than 20 years with the company holding key leadership positions in operational, commercial and strategic areas, he assumed the general management of Intercruises in February.
Article from CruisesNews magazine no. 78 – September 2026
Congratulations on your appointment as CEO of Intercruises. After almost two decades with the company, what does it mean for you to now take on the global leadership of the business?
My journey with Intercruises began almost twenty years ago, and it is an honor and a privilege for me to now lead this fantastic business and our incredible teams.
I assume an enormous responsibility: to continue building on the foundations we have laid together over the years, to maintain the high quality of our services and operations, to strengthen the close relationship we maintain with clients and partners and, above all, to support, lead and empower the Intercruises teams around the world.
I'm also excited to continue driving business growth, with new opportunities on the horizon.
You've spent virtually your entire career at Intercruises. What lessons from your years in operations still guide your leadership of the company today?
From my first day at Intercruises, there's a principle that has been instilled in all of us and is present in everything we do: "We're only as good as our last port of call."
This means that every port of call is a priority, regardless of the destination, cruise line, or ship size. While we should celebrate our achievements, we can never become complacent or rest on past successes.
From a purely operational perspective, it's about acting with humility and practicality. Every port of call is different: the port, the ship, the weather conditions, the crew, and the passengers. Careful planning is essential for everything to go smoothly, but so are agility and the ability to react to changing circumstances.
This mindset is part of my leadership style. Every situation must be analyzed within its own context. We need a well-defined strategy to drive future business growth, but we must also be prepared to change course and react as our environment evolves.
Furthermore, I've never been someone who just works from an office, and I don't intend for that to change. I want to continue being out in port with our teams, visiting our clients, and spending time with our partners at the destinations.
Intercruises currently manages over 13,000 port calls annually in more than 400 ports across 50 countries. What are the main challenges today in maintaining a consistent service on a global scale?
The challenge isn't maintaining our standards, because we have robust processes and well-established training programs. The real challenge lies in adapting to very different operating environments worldwide and ensuring that those standards are maintained consistently, but with the necessary flexibility, regardless of the destination.
I believe we do it better than anyone else in the industry. That's why we define ourselves as Your Local Partner Worldwide. Intercruises teams adapt to the specific needs of each destination to offer the same high-quality service, whether your stopover is in Barcelona, Singapore, Sydney, Vancouver, Port Everglades, Piraeus, or Southampton.
In recent years, the sector has demonstrated tremendous resilience. From the perspective of a port and tourism services operator, how has the business actually changed compared to before the pandemic?
The cruise industry and the people who work in it are resilient. There is no doubt about that.
The sector has undergone changes since the pandemic. The use of digital tools and the implementation of more advanced hygiene protocols are evident and have been widely discussed. However, for me, an even more significant change is that, before the pandemic, the value that working with Intercruises brings to our partners was perhaps not always sufficiently recognized or prioritized.
Intercruises is a global company with extensive experience, possessing the planning, resources, and relationships necessary to support a cruise company in any situation.
During the pandemic, our team worked around the clock and went far beyond expectations to support our partners, even in cases where we weren't the designated operator. This shouldn't be overlooked or taken for granted, as it's a significant part of the value of working with a company like Intercruises.
Cruise lines are increasingly seeking greater efficiency in port calls while simultaneously offering more personalized experiences for passengers. How can these two demands be balanced?
It's a challenge, but in reality, they are two mutually reinforcing objectives.
Technology applied to transport planning and the management of guides and personnel allows us to gain operational efficiency. At the same time, it helps us better adapt our operations to offer a more personalized experience and service.
Furthermore, our local knowledge, the resources we dedicate to product development, and the relationships we maintain in destinations allow us to create more unique and original experiences. A good example of this is the National Geographic Day Tours.
Therefore, the pursuit of greater efficiency does not imply reducing personalization. On the contrary, it is precisely what allows us to offer personalized experiences at scale.
Spain continues to solidify its position as one of the world's leading cruise destinations. What strengths does it have compared to other markets, and in what areas do you think there is still room for improvement?
What can be said that hasn't already been said? Its infrastructure, culture, gastronomy, architecture, the variety of excursions, the climate, the natural beauty, and the excellent partners we work with.
Furthermore, it's a year-round cruise destination and a gateway to many other Mediterranean destinations. I think most people already know why Spain holds such a strong position in the sector.
There are also areas for improvement that represent opportunities for all stakeholders. Diversifying and decentralizing both port destinations and excursions in the most popular locations continues to offer considerable potential. The progressive extension of the season presents another opportunity.
Where possible and appropriate, a more staggered distribution of arrivals and departures in the most popular destinations during peak season could also be considered. This could be combined with a greater number of overnight stopovers, in line with reports published this summer on the growth of night tourism in Spain.
Spain is a fantastic destination and there are opportunities to further improve the cruise passenger experience, while ensuring balanced and sustainable growth.
Public debate sometimes focuses on overtourism. What role should companies like Intercruises play in contributing to a more balanced development of destinations?
I understand this concern, and I believe that companies like Intercruises have a real responsibility. We must help destinations and cruise lines find the right balance and solutions through sound planning and a willingness to collaborate from all parties.
The goal should be to plan and manage operations efficiently to promote a better distribution of tourist flows within the destination. In this context, technology, local knowledge and relationships, and operational experience combine to provide solutions.
The dialogue with cruise lines and destination authorities, facilitated by organizations such as CLIA, Cruise Europe, and MedCruise, is invaluable. This collaboration is what allows us to move forward as an industry.
In the most popular destinations, we need to work on decentralizing tourism, developing excursions that allow us to discover lesser-known places.
For example, I'm sure that almost everyone reading this interview has some product at home with the name Gragnano on it. This town, located near Naples, is known worldwide as the birthplace of pasta. We offer one of our National Geographic Day Tours there.
Despite its culinary importance, rich history, and idyllic natural surroundings, Gragnano receives relatively few visitors. This is where companies like Intercruises can make a difference: offering travelers unique and memorable experiences while also contributing to a more equitable distribution of tourism's economic benefits.
There's a lot of talk about better distributing tourist flows and creating new excursions. What kind of experiences are travelers currently looking for?
Over the last fifteen years, we've seen a growing demand for authentic excursions off the beaten track.
This trend is real. If we analyze the data from tourism surveys, this is the type of experience that travelers consistently say they want. Looking at sales data from the last year, we also see growth in this type of excursion.
However, their volume is still much lower than that of excursions to major urban attractions and tourist sites, those must-see destinations that many people want to visit at least once in their lives.
From Intercruises' perspective, we must find a balance and offer both options in the best possible way. This means developing and promoting more authentic and moderately adventurous experiences, such as hiking and cycling routes, local culinary offerings, small-group activities, and experiences that foster genuine contact with local communities.
At the same time, we must continue working to get passengers to the most popular tourist attractions as efficiently as possible, taking into account the interests of all parties involved.
Artificial intelligence is reaching all areas of tourism. Where do you think it will have the greatest impact on Intercruises' daily operations?
Artificial intelligence will empower our teams and create new business opportunities. It will allow people to spend less time on repetitive administrative tasks and focus on higher-value activities that truly make a difference and benefit both our business and our partners.
From an operational standpoint, AI will allow us to continue improving efficiency. It will be useful both in pre-flight planning, for example, to organize staff, guides, vehicles, and crew movements, and in reacting to unforeseen situations. It can help us assess how a flight delay affects transfer needs during a passenger changeover operation, and so on.
We are also exploring AI-based solutions for areas such as travel document verification and smart transfer management, including manifest processing, service planning, and vehicle allocation.
In many cases, AI is already supporting this work, but recent advances will allow us to further improve how we operate. I also believe it can be part of the solution for better managing visitor flows in the most popular destinations.
This transformation also applies to how we develop our teams. We are currently working on an AI-powered training program designed to accelerate learning and improve both consistency and performance. The program includes a virtual assistant to support onboarding new professionals, AI-generated video content, analytics tools to identify training improvement opportunities, and more advanced reporting systems.
In short, we are living in an exciting time in which we can use artificial intelligence to enhance human creativity and improve decision-making.
To what extent is digitalization transforming coordination between cruise lines, ports, authorities, and local operators?
Coordination is undoubtedly much better than before and continues to improve. The great opportunity now lies in achieving greater standardization and connectivity among all stakeholders involved along a cruise itinerary.
Digitalization, technology, and artificial intelligence will help drive and accelerate this evolution, automating administrative tasks and helping organizations make faster and better-informed decisions.
As a company that operates in hundreds of ports around the world, Intercruises is uniquely positioned to bridge those connections and be at the forefront of this digital transformation.
Sustainability is no longer the sole responsibility of cruise lines. What initiatives is Intercruises developing to reduce the impact of its land-based operations?
Sustainability isn't about a single initiative, but about making thousands of better decisions every day in all areas of the business.
We continuously work to optimize transport planning, resource allocation, and operational efficiency through improved scheduling, technology, and local knowledge. At the same time, we collaborate closely with local suppliers and partners to identify more sustainable ways to deliver services to destinations.
Sustainable mobility is one of our main areas of focus. We are moving towards more sustainable alternatives and have set ambitious electrification targets for both operational vehicles and bus services.
Our goal is for electric vehicles to represent between 80% and 90% of the fleet by 2030. We are also conducting trials with HVO-powered coaches in Benidorm and Malaga, preparing a pilot project with an electric coach in Mallorca for December 2026, and using electric jeeps on excursions in Las Palmas.
Some actions are highly visible, while others are more small-scale. One initiative we are particularly proud of is our internal sustainability platform for excursions, developed in accordance with the criteria of the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC). This tool allows us to assess and improve the sustainability of the experiences we design and offer.
Sustainability isn't something you review once a year. It's a way of thinking that must be permanently present in how we operate.
Do you think both passengers and cruise lines truly value sustainable excursions and experiences, or is price still the deciding factor?
The industry has moved beyond the notion that sustainability and commercial success are opposing goals. Cruise lines and their passengers are looking for great experiences.
Our responsibility is to integrate sustainability into the very design of these experiences, so that it is part of them from the beginning and benefits travelers, local communities and destinations.
Our GSTC certification has been renewed until July 2029. Furthermore, 92% of our Mediterranean excursions have been assessed using our sustainability system. This assessment covers 1,940 suppliers, 1,163 products, and 295,416 passengers.
This data demonstrates that sustainability can be systematically integrated into a broad product portfolio, rather than being treated as an add-on reserved for a minority offering.
You lead a company with hundreds of professionals worldwide. How do you build a shared corporate culture in such a decentralized organization?
I sincerely believe that the people who make up Intercruises have something special. We can call it mindset, common motivation, or shared values, but the truth is that we have organically developed an incredibly strong identity across countries and cultures.
We maintain good communication throughout the organization, sharing successes and recognizing achievements. On paper, we have a clear hierarchy, but when we're at the port, the airport, or working at the destination, we're all part of a single team with one goal: to provide cruise lines and their passengers with high-quality operations and services.
What qualities do you consider essential to lead a global company within the cruise industry?
Passion, agility, resilience, and curiosity.
The cruise industry, like the tourism sector as a whole, is constantly evolving. Every year brings unforeseen challenges and opportunities. Even with the best planning, circumstances can change in an instant.
We must be able to adapt, often very quickly, accept what we cannot control, and manage in the best possible way everything that is within our control.
Curiosity is fundamental to continuing to innovate, improve, and think about the future. The cruise industry offers numerous opportunities, and we want to remain at the forefront of everything we do.
I'm sure almost any manager in the industry will relate to this: you explain your job to family and friends, and they ask how you're able to do it and why you do it. The answer is that we love our work and have a genuine passion for the cruise industry. If you can't say that, this probably isn't the right industry for you.
If you had to pinpoint three major trends that will shape the port services and excursions business over the next decade, what would they be?
Artificial intelligence. It will allow the sector to be more efficient, better connected, more responsive, and able to manage increasingly complex operations across multiple destinations.
A more regulated operating environment. All players in the sector will have to operate within a framework of greater regulation, which will require adaptability and collaboration.
The growth of new experiences in destinations. Excursions to lesser-known places will finally take center stage, with a continued increase in relevant experiences that connect travelers with culture, nature, gastronomy, and local communities.
At the same time, we will see strong growth in demand for luxury services at destinations. This will lead to increased demand for highly personalized services and exclusive experiences, and will create new opportunities for innovation.
Finally, how would you like the industry to define Intercruises in five years?
Currently, Intercruises Shoreside & Port Services is the world's leading cruise destination services and port operations company, and is Your Local Partner Worldwide, the local partner for our clients around the globe. In five years, we should have maintained and strengthened this identity and reputation.
I believe we are entering a pivotal stage for tourism. The significant changes taking place in the global operating environment are creating both opportunities and challenges for the cruise industry.
In five years' time, I would like Intercruises to be recognized as one of the leading organizations in this transformation, evolving alongside our partners and the industry as a whole.
Are there any projects or innovations you'd like to personally promote during this new phase?
There are several. Our business in New Zealand is particularly interesting to me, and I see numerous growth opportunities, both there and throughout the Asia-Pacific region.
We have several platform-related projects and some diversification opportunities that we will share more information about when the time comes.
I am also very excited about the pool of talent we have at Intercruises and how we can develop the future leaders of the business.
However, one area I find particularly interesting is how we can better respond to the growth of the luxury cruise market. We've been working with companies in this segment for years, but I believe we have a great opportunity to expand our activity in this area. Certainly, we have many projects and innovations ahead of us.
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