EasyCruise Takes Jab at Carnival in Marketing Ploy

EasyCruise took a cheeky shot at Carnival Cruise Lines in a new print ad promoting its Caribbean cruises.

The ad says: “If spending nights at sea in tacky ballrooms full of old folks is not your idea of a holiday, then easyCruise.com is for you,” followed by “any similarity with Carnival Cruise ships is purely coincidental.”

A press release touting the new ad said the remark would “continue the spat” between EasyCruise owner Stelios Haji-Ioannou and Carnival CEO Mickey Arison.

This summer, the London Times reported on a heated e-mail exchange between the two after Stelios made negative remarks about the Costa Magica on a Sky TV show called “Cruise With Stelios.”

Ads will run in the Miami Herald for about two months, “but the size of the ad campaign is dependent ultimately on the effect it has on sales, as does the rest of the marketing mix,” said James Rothnie, EasyGroup director of corporate affairs.

As for Carnival, the war of words is, well, a bit of a yawner. Spokeswoman Jennifer de la Cruz said, “We don´t feel that it warrants any comment.”