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Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä
Category: More News More News
Published: 07 September 2017 07 September 2017

SkySea Cruise Line, the first contemporary cruise line specifically created for the China market, announced that it will cooperate with Alipay, one of China's leading third-party payment platforms, to begin accepting mobile payments on the SkySea Golden Era since September 17th, bringing contemporary cruising and mobile payment together for the first time.

SkySea will also launch its new website on September 12nd, it will not only offer direct booking, but also new features such as Quick Booking and Online Room Selection, bringing an improved booking experience. Guests will have more choices to book with www.skysea.com directly or through one of valued travel agent partners, which will greatly improving the cruise booking experience.

Pay with Alipay at Sea for a smarter cruise experience

In the past when cruise guests spent money on board, they needed to link a credit card to their room card or pay a fixed deposit. This rather cumbersome process meant than many transactions were not processed instantly.

To cater to the growing demand for mobile payment from cruise guests in the mobile Internet era, SkySea Cruise Line introduce more flexibility and convenience with onboard mobile pay with Alipay, one of China's leading third-party payment platforms, to begin accepting Alipay as a payment method on board the SkySea Golden Era since September 17th.

Guests will be able to use their mobile phone-bound Alipay accounts to pay across most of the ship, including at the service center, restaurants, bars, and duty-free shops. According to SkySea, guests that use Alipay on board can instantly see their daily expenses, which is significantly more convenient than linking a credit card to a room card like in the past. It also suits the payment habits of cruise guests in the mobile Internet era. Guests using the Alipay mobile app to pay on board will not be restricted by access to the Internet. The only difference is that guests who have access to the ship's Wi-Fi can enjoy a higher payment limit.

This is the first time SkySea will accept third-party mobile payments on board. Ken Muskat, CEO of SkySea Cruise Line, pointed out that cooperation with Alipay is an important strategic alliance for SkySea to improve the guest experience, and a contemporary cruise is also the perfect landscape to drive the mobile payment trend. "In the past, we’ve relied on our high quality product and outstanding value, with guests experiencing the four specialties of SkySea—Gourmet Foods, Themed Activities, Five-Star Service and MICE. In the future, we will continue to place enhancing the guest experience at the forefront, constantly improve the quality of products and services, and further build SkySea as the preferred international cruise brand for Chinese tourists”, Ken Muskat said.

SkySea website becomes more powerful with Quick Booking and Online Room Selection

At the same time as providing more convenience for guests on board, SkySea is also working to enhance the booking experience. On September 12nd, SkySea’s upgraded website will be launched, which will introduce two new functions - Quick Booking and Online Room Selection.

Guests will be able to participate in online sales events, and using the new Quick Booking function, they will be able to book without filling in all the passenger information. It can then be added at a later, more convenient time. In addition, online room selection will be added, so that much like selecting a seat for a flight, guests can choose their preferred room in advance. This will make it much easier for guests travelling in groups to select rooms near friends and family.