Travel Industry Leaders Reflect on Richard Fain’s Legacy

As word spread of Richard Fain’s retirement after 33 years as head of Royal Caribbean, industry leaders reflected on his legacy and impact on not just cruising, but the travel industry as a whole.

Fain, who has overseen the growth of the modern cruise industry, helped shape its future with innovative new ship designs and a never-ending commitment to travel advisors. He is retiring effective Jan. 3 and is being replaced by Royal Caribbean Group CFO Jason Liberty.

“For me, Richard’s legacy is wrapped in two themes,” said Brad Tolkin, co-chairman/CEO for World Travel Holdings. “He was bold. He changed the game with the build of the Oasis-Class ships. This was not just a larger ship, but a HUGE jump from the previous size of any class of ships. And he had the misfortune of rolling it out in the height of the financial crisis — December 2009. The Oasis-Class ships hold the biggest price premium of any class of ships in any company.”

Tolkin, whose World Travel Holdings includes several travel agent businesses such as Dream Vacations and CruiseOne, also noted Fain’s “fanatical belief in the travel distribution system. Richard recognized more than anyone else that in order to succeed he would need the army of professional travel advisors to support his brands. He never wavered from this commitment and showed it once again by loaning the small travel agency money during this pandemic in spite of the significant financial challenges his own company faced.”

Tolkin refers to the $40 million travel agent loan program launched in December 2020 to help agencies survive despite nearly zero commission income during the travel shutdown.

“If I had to pick a ‘Godfather’ of the cruising industry, Richard would be it,” said Vicky Garcia, COO and co-owner of Cruise Planners. “For 33 years he has led Royal Caribbean with integrity, humor and innovation, and I couldn’t be more thrilled for him as he transitions to his new role. We know he will continue to help design and launch creative and innovative ships that propel the industry forward.”

Added her colleague, Michelle Fee, founder and CEO of Cruise Planners, “I’m deeply honored to not only call him a colleague, but a friend as well. He worked tirelessly throughout the pandemic to champion travel advisors, and we are here today, safely sailing again largely due to his efforts. What Richard does best is bring heart to everything he works on, and we all felt his passion in the way that he led. He will be missed but I couldn’t be happier for him as he transitions to his new role as Chairman of the Board at Royal Caribbean and spending more time with his eight beautiful grandchildren.”

The continued assistance for travel agents also was cited by Pam Young, executive vice president-partner relations for Internova Travel Group. “Royal Caribbean Group, under Richard’s leadership, was one of the first cruise lines to step forward to protect advisors’ commissions on canceled sailings. This was a lifeline for the travel advisor community,” she said. “In addition, as the pandemic continued far longer than any of us could have imagined, Royal Caribbean Group introduced the ‘Pay It Forward’ program, which again helped the industry by providing interest-free loans to qualifying agencies.”

Young also noted how Fain projected a voice of calm, through a series of videos addressing travel advisors during the pandemic. The videos, shot in his backyard, showed a personal yet always positive side of Fain.
“When we were all struggling to stay positive, Richard was there as a voice of calm. We all had days that we needed to dig deep to stay positive and his video messages helped lift us all,” she said. “All of this is a testament to his leadership and commitment to this industry.”

Roger Dow, president and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association, also heralded Fain’s contributions.

“One cannot think of the cruise industry without Richard’s name rising to the top as one of its most visionary leaders,” Dow said. “He did a phenomenal job growing and modernizing Royal Caribbean, but Richard’s legacy extends far beyond the cruise lines to his many global contributions that improved the travel industry overall.”

Of course, the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) also noted Fain’s leadership.

“The influence of Richard’s leadership permeates the growth and advancements of the cruise industry over the past 30 years,” said Kelly Craighead, president and CEO of CLIA. “During his time as CEO of Royal Caribbean Group, Richard has provided invaluable leadership to CLIA, and inspired transformation of an industry that is now leading the way in responsible tourism while offering incredible holiday experiences that are accessible to people of all ages, interests, and backgrounds. We are fortunate that he will remain engaged and connected in his new role.”

J.D. O’Hara, CEO of Internova Travel Group, congratulated Fain on an incredible career.

“For more than three decades, Richard has shepherded Royal Caribbean Group into one of the great companies of our industry,” O’Hara said. “An unwavering supporter of the travel advisor community, he has served as a model leader for me personally, and for leaders everywhere. I’d like to thank Richard specifically for the past two years, where we could turn to him for a voice of calm and reason, even in the darkest, scariest days. The company’s culture is firmly entrenched thanks to Richard’s leadership, and we look forward to many years of continued partnership with the new regime at Royal Caribbean. Best of luck to a true class act.”

Here are more congratulatory messages for Fain from travel industry leaders.

John Lovell, president of Travel Leaders Group

“Richard is a true icon in the travel industry: an amazing leader, a visionary that propelled Royal Caribbean to incredible heights and, most importantly, Richard is someone who always does the right thing — a humanitarian first and foremost. All of us in the travel industry are better off because Richard is such a huge advocate of the travel distribution system. As he steps aside from the CEO role, I wish him continued success and want to say thanks for everything he has done for the travel industry over the past 30 plus years!”

Jackie Friedman, president of Nexion Travel Group

“Richard Fain has been a light of positivity for the travel agency distribution channel over his entire career, but especially the past 20 months. His leadership through tough times, his positive video messaging, his financial assistance programs, and his generous support of ASTA’s advocacy efforts were instrumental in helping many small businesses get through the crisis.”

Annie Scrivanich, senior vice president, Cruise Specialists

At Cruise Specialists, our staff respected Richard Fain’s consistent, reliable approach to working with the retail trade, systematic growth of the RCG brands and genuine pride in his own staff. He never forgot we are first and foremost in the people business. During the pandemic he was a reassuring voice of reason. We appreciated his guidance, candor and sense of humor, especially when he sang! His optimistic, inspirational outlook is one that we should all strive to achieve.”

Theresa Scalzitti, chief sales officer at Cruise Planners

“I began my travel career at Royal Caribbean and learned so much from Richard through his natural leadership that brought everyone together and pushed the brand ahead. It made me a better leader, and I am so grateful for the company culture he fostered and the work he does to ensure our travel advisors are taken care of. He is a true icon.”