Paul H. Duynhouwer

PAUL H. DUYNHOUWER, president and CEO of INTRAV and Clipper Cruise
Line, was born and spent his childhood in the Netherlands. He came to
the United States in 1958 as a scholarship student at Boston’s
prestigious Berklee College of Music. As a jazz trombonist, Duynhouwer
toured the U.S. for two years on a whirlwind schedule of one-night
stands until, in 1960, he settled in New York City, auditioning for
studio work with a broadcast company. In search of a day job to pay the
rent and with no work experience other than a professional musician, he
was referred by an employment agency to the reservations department at
Holland America Line, then in the heyday of its transatlantic business,
where he stayed for seven years. After relocating to California in the
late 1960s, Duynhouwer worked as a travel agent and cruise specialist
with a large charter/wholesale operator in San Francisco prior to
joining the then-fledgling Royal Cruise Line, where he served as senior
vice president and general manager until 1978. Following a stint with
New York-based Costa Cruises as senior vice president for marketing and
sales, he was tapped in 1982 as a key member of the start-up team for
Clipper Cruise Line, functioning as a ‘jack-of-all-trades’ under the
title of senior vice president, marketing and sales. Duynhouwer left
Clipper in 1986, moving back to New York to become executive vice
president for Special Expeditions until August 1989, when he rejoined
Clipper as president and turned the company onto its present course as
an adventure-oriented travel company. In December 1996, upon the
acquisition of Clipper Cruise Line by its former sister company and
deluxe-tour operator, INTRAV, Duynhouwer was named president and CEO of
both companies. INTRAV and Clipper have always been closely allied; the
same founder, Barney A. Ebsworth, started both companies — INTRAV in
1959 and Clipper in 1982. At Clipper, Duynhouwer has greatly expanded
and refined the company’s range of itineraries while preserving
Clipper’s financial integrity, most recently recommending the addition
of a third ship, the 122-passenger Clipper Adventurer, scheduled to
debut in April 1998 from Lisbon. His creative marketing talents and
attention to the quality, substance and value of the Clipper product
have made the line one of few flourishing survivors in the small-ship
segment. At INTRAV, Duynhouwer has refocused the company’s business,
expanding beyond its traditional strengths in group travel to encompass
bookings from agents and a wider audience of individual travelers. ‘My
goal with INTRAV is to concentrate on what we do best,’ said Duynhouwer.

‘And that is designing and operating unique, thoughtful tours for the
traveler seeking more substance from their travel experiences. The
industry has changed fairly dramatically in the last 10 or 20 years,
with airline deregulation, the increased number of both megaships and
prepackaged tours, and international travel more commonplace making
group-only business no longer feasible or desirable. Clearly, our
mission now must be to make deluxe tours such as those offered by INTRAV
easily accessible to individuals seeking our brand of destination-
oriented travel.’ As a veteran of more than 35 years in the travel
industry, Duynhouwer sees a clear trend toward a more discerning
American traveling public. ‘The market is much more sophisticated now,
with a substantial number of people seeking a calmer, more thoughtful
way to travel, away from the crowded tourist destinations,’ Duynhouwer
said. ‘Both INTRAV and Clipper fill the need for this type of
experience. Clipper’s focus on small-ship voyages to interesting
destinations, and INTRAV’s dedication to deluxe adventures, whether by
small ship, land, or private jet or Concorde charter, bringing people
face-to-face with nature, culture and history, is a concept that will
continue to attract a growing audience,’ Duynhouwer concluded.