From 2014 to 2016, Jason Montague was president and chief operating officer of Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises. Then until 2022, he focused exclusively on Regent as president and CEO. Now he’s back to serve as chief luxury officer of Oceania and Regent, sister brands of parent company Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd.
To better understand his new role and what it means to the upscale and luxury cruise markets, we talked with the executive about why returned — and what he has in store for travel advisors.
What does the position of chief luxury officer mean to you?
Coming back overseeing both brands is coming back home. I obviously have a strong passion for both brands. They’re not just businesses to me. They’re both very special.
I helped launch Oceania with a business plan back in the early 2000s and spearheaded the integration with Regent when Oceania and Regent came together in 2008.
[Being] chief luxury officer over both brands is really to submit the fact that we do have two of the best brands in the expanded luxury space — because it has evolved, especially over the last decade — and making sure that we're really focused on delivering that luxury.
[Being] chief luxury officer over both brands is really to submit the fact that we do have two of the best brands in the expanded luxury space — because it has evolved, especially over the last decade — and making sure that we're really focused on delivering that luxury.
Oceania is a little bit more luxury by choice, because it's not the most inclusive, [and] Regent is the most inclusive.
What does your current strategy look like in partnership with travel advisors in bringing new clients to Oceania and Regent?
That's the biggest thing. It's one of the things that I've always loved the most about this job, which is partnering.
I look at it as we really have three core teams that are part of the family: the shoreside staff, the guests and the travel partners. We’re the perfect triangle; when we're all working together, that's when the magic happens.
We have to partner with our travel advisors and really work together. We can help each other attract new-to-brand guests for us, but also help our travel partners grow their business at the same time. So, we all win. That's always been a part of the core focus, and [I look] forward to continuing to build on that.
What can previous guests expect for the brands that may vary from before or stay the same?
I think the two-year period of stepping back gave me a great time to reflect on this. Any product that doesn't change and evolve is at risk. So, we've always looked at how can we make sure that we're delivering these great personalized experiences at both brands and continue to evolve and elevate that.
Any product that doesn't change and evolve is at risk.
I spend a lot of time on the ships talking with guests, but also doing a lot of different events around the country and world talking to our travel partners. We're listening and learning and continuing to evolve and improve.
Particularly, with the Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) brand constantly raising the bar, how do you continue to differentiate Oceania and Regent from NCL but also from each other?
NCL does a great job. I was just in The Haven on the Norwegian Aqua christening cruise.
[For] both brands, again it’s more of a matter of preference. Regent is on the ultra-luxury side. It’s all-suite, all-balcony.
On Oceania, [it’s] a little bit more luxury by choice. We don’t typically include shore excursions or even liquor.
So, if a guest really wants to choose and customize it the way they want it, we have the best of both worlds in how we’re delivering.
Is there anything more you can tease about the brands’ refurbishment programs?
On the Regent side, we have the Mariner coming up later this year and then the Voyager early next year. The ships are going to look brand new.
We've already done a good amount of work on the Riviera [and] Marina has done the vast majority, but there's some additional work that's going to happen next year as well. All the purpose-built ships are going to look fantastic from the Oceania brand.
The Navigator, which is a beloved ship, is moving onto its next new chapter in its life, as well as Insignia. As we move forward, we're trying to create a much more consistent platform for each brand when it comes to their fleets.
