“Growth mode”: Oceania welcomes Kim Tobias, promotes Canadian dollar at par offer

Oceania Cruises is in growth mode as it bolsters its support for Canadian travel advisors with a new team member along with an attractive promotion.

In the field, the culinary and destination-focused cruise line has hired Vancouver-based Kim Tobias to its Canadian sales team, PAX has learned.  

Tobias, formally of Viking, Carnival and WestJet, is now Oceania’s business development manager for British Columbia and Alberta.

Speaking to PAX at The Travel Agent Next Door’s national conference, which is happening this week in Mexico’s Riviera Maya, Tobias said she looks forward to working with Oceania’s trade partners to help grow their sales, both in FIT and groups.

“I'm really excited,” said Tobias, who has worked in the travel industry for more than 20 years. “Oceania has a wonderful groups program, with lots of opportunities. I'm excited to work with travel agents on consumer nights, support their sales, while making sure that we're easy to do business with.”

Full-circle moment

In a way, the job represents a full-circle moment for Tobias – one of her first experiences on a cruise ship, long ago, was with Oceania.

At the time, she wasn’t much of a cruiser, having only worked for land-based companies. But after spending days on the Mediterranean Sea, visiting dreamy ports of call, such as Rome, Capri, Monte Carlo, Marseille and Majorca, she was hooked.

READ MORE: Oceania offering Canadian dollars at par on select 2025-26 voyages

“Every day, leading up to that cruise, I couldn't believe I was going to visit all of these incredible ports. When I got on the ship, I was in heaven. That's when I really incorporated my love of cruising. It's nice to be coming full circle with Oceania.”

Building on the momentum

It’s a good time to explore cruising’s potential as more Canadians pursue vacations at sea.

“Post pandemic, a lot of people moved from land-based vacations to cruises. We still have that momentum of introducing people to cruising for the first time,” Tobias said. “The wonderful thing about Oceania is that we have so many incredible itineraries for people that want to see the world, including Asia and the South Pacific. People, now, are trying to see other parts of the world and Oceania has some incredible itineraries.”

Oceania’s small ships, which hold between 650 to 1,200 passengers, have one Chef for every ten guests, and have the ability to visit lesser-known ports, is also “exactly what Canadians are looking for,” Tobias said.

“It’s for the discerning client that wants a unique experience,” she said.

In Canada, Tobias joins Guillaume Cameron, who was promoted to director of strategic accounts and host agencies at Oceania on January 1.

Cameron supports Oceania’s host agency partners at a head office level while working alongside his team of strategic account managers.

Tobias also now fills a void left by Cathy Denroche, Oceania’s former director of sales in Western Canada, who retired last year after 48 years of working in the travel industry.

Canadian dollar at-par sale

The update comes as Oceania promotes a limited-time, Canadian dollar at-par sale on more than 60 select 2025 and 2026 voyages.

The promo, announced in March, unlocks cruises to Mediterranean capitals, seaside resorts on the French and Italian Rivieras, and Northern Europe’s locales, through May 31, 2025.

Brennan Quesnele, who was recently named Oceania’s senior vice president of sales after years of working at Norwegian Cruise Line, was responsible for “flicking the switch” and creating the at-par program.

After all, if there’s anyone who understands the importance of the Canadian dollar versus the U.S. exchange rate, it’s Quesnele. The sales executive may live in Miami, Florida, but Quesnele is Canadian. He grew up in Northern Ontario in Sault Ste. Marie.

Calling Oceania’s at-par program a “personal passion project,” Quesnele said that it ultimately helps showcase the cruise line’s global offering.

READ MORE: Oceania unveils 2026-27 tropics & exotics collection

“We call in over 100 countries and 600 ports. I know that Canadians, being one of them, love to travel and we have some really unique itineraries that are featured in the program,” said Quesnele, who appeared at TTAND’s conference to meet agents and present. “There are over 60 sailings – and some leave from Canada.”

One voyage, for example, departs from Montreal, sails up the Saint Lawrence River, and then heads to Greenland and Iceland.

Quesnele, who started his career as a travel advisor in Vancouver, was involved in selecting which itineraries would be eligible for the promotion.

“We listened to our partners,” he said. “We had good conversations with agency partners in Canada and met them where their needs were.”

Growing up in a border town like Sault Ste. Marie, Quesnele is also “very familiar” with the power an at-par program holds.

“Your dollar just stretches further,” he said.

Macro forces at play

It also comes at a time when geopolitical relations with the U.S., amid ongoing tariffs, remain tense. And as more Canadians rethink their travel plans.   

“I think when there are macro forces and pressures outside of everyone's control, it's important to remind Canadian advisors, and Canadian citizens, that the world is an incredible place,” Quesnele said. “And Oceania sails the world – we touch all seven continents.”

Oceania is gearing up to launch its newest ship, the 1,200-guest Allura, this July. It follows sister ship, Vista, which launched in May 2023.

Allura will enter service from Trieste, Italy, on July 18, cruising six days to Athens, Greece, calling in the Eastern Mediterranean including Rijeka, Croatia; Ravenna, Italy; Dubrovnik, Croatia; and Kotor, Montenegro.

As part of her inaugural season, the ship will also sail a four-day roundtrip voyage from New York City in September.

Oceania's next class of ships, internally referred to as "Project Quattro" or "Quattro Class," are also expected to launch in 2027. The timeline will be shared later on.

“We’re in growth mode,” Quesnele said. “It’s an exciting thing to say. Vista was our first new ship in over a decade. Now we're on a growth trajectory where we're introducing more capacity and fantastic vessels that embody who we are.”

Kim Tobias can be reached at ktobias@oceaniacruises.com.

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