Cruise industry stars shine at 23rd annual CLIA Awards

March 7, 2026 – The brightest stars of the Australasian cruise community have been named at a record-breaking 23^rd Cruise Industry Awards in Sydney, where close to 600 guests gathered on the weekend to celebrate the strength of the international cruise community.

Held by Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) at the International Convention Centre (ICC) Sydney on Saturday, the gala dinner and presentation night was the largest event of its kind ever mounted by the Australasian cruise industry.

A total of 15 awards were presented to travel agencies and individuals, chosen from 83 finalists from across Australia and New Zealand. This year’s awards had attracted around 1,200 nominations from across the CLIA membership, the highest number ever received.

CLIA Executive Director Australasia Joel Katz said the 23^rd annual awards reflected the strength of CLIA’s travel agent community in Australia and New Zealand.

“This year has brought our biggest-ever awards night, and we’ve never before had so much involvement from our travel agent members across Australia and New Zealand,” Mr Katz said. “The excitement around these awards is a reflection of the record number of members we now have in Australasia and the enormous opportunity our community sees in cruising right now.”

Saturday’s event was hosted by entertainer Tim Campbell and involved more than 100 singers, dancers and other performers who helped capture the excitement of cruising and pay tribute to CLIA’s membership.

Top individual winners included Tina Wheelock of Cruise Express, named Australia’s Cruise Consultant of the Year, and Lisa Wharfe of Pukekohe Travel, awarded New Zealand Cruise Consultant of the Year.

Jason Rigg of Phil Hoffmann Travel Glenelg was named Australia’s Rising Star, while Flynn Cox of Travel Associates Howick was awarded Rising Star for New Zealand. Lauren Jenkins of MTA-Mobile Travel Agents was named Home-Based Cruise Consultant of the Year for Australia, and Trish Seeherr of TS Travel Ltd was awarded Cruise Broker of the Year for New Zealand. Lee Tulloch won the Media Award for her work in The Australian.

Agency winners included Ignite Travel Group, which was named Multi Location/Brand Cruise Agency of the Year in Australasia. Main Beach Travel was awarded Australia’s Single Location Cruise Agency of the Year, while Pukekohe Travel was named New Zealand’s Single Location Cruise Agency of the Year.

View the full winner list.