Verified — real FDD extraction
SBA-eligible · directory code S5002 since 2020
CRUISE PLANNERS
Other · independent · est. —
Cruise Planners is a home-based travel agency franchise selling cruises, tours, and vacation packages. Franchisees work from home as travel advisors, booking trips for clients and earning commissions from cruise lines and other travel suppliers.
New to franchising? Start here
A franchise is a business where you (the franchisee) pay a company (the franchisor) for the right to open and run a location using their brand and system — think a local Anytime Fitness or Taco John's owned by a small-business owner, not the corporation.
Before you can buy in, U.S. law requires the franchisor to give you a Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) — a long legal filing covering its fees, finances, and history. The numbers on this page come straight from that document:
- Franchise fee — the one-time cost to buy in.
- Royalty — the ongoing cut of your sales you pay the franchisor.
- Item 20 — how many locations opened and closed, the basis for our verdict (from Proven & strong down to Distressed — or Too new to judge).
The verdict
Not enough disclosure
Distress
No verified FDD extraction to judge from. Any figures shown are labelled sample data or independent federal records.
Exit rate · latest year
9.6%
fiscal 2015, per Item 20
Cost to open
$2K–$21K
Item 7 total investment range
SBA loan defaults
No loan record
no SBA 7(a)/504 loans found for this brand
Behind the verdict
the record, factor by factor · Item 20
3-yr trend · Item 20 Table 1
terminations + ceased-ops vs. all exits · Table 3
transfers vs. base · Table 3
actual vs. projected openings · Table 5
Item 19 disclosure + completeness
Systemwide units
2013–2015
Survival record
FDD Item 20 · outlet status by year
In fiscal 2015, 173 of 1,795 franchised outlets left the system — a 9.6% annualized exit rate. Not every exit is a failure — but this is the measurable floor.
Show the outlet tables ↓Hide the evidence ↑
| Status (FTC) | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Outlets at start | 1,198 | 1,499 | 1,796 |
| Opened | 439 | 471 | 483 |
| Transfers | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Terminations | 63 | 65 | 68 |
| Non-renewals | 55 | 68 | 89 |
| Reacquired by franchisor | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ceased — other reasons | 20 | 41 | 16 |
| Outlets at end | 1,499 | 1,796 | 2,106 |
| Net change | +301 | +297 | +310 |
What it costs — and what it drags
FDD Items 5–7 · fees, investment, royalty
Buying in means a $11K franchise fee (Item 5) and a total investment of $2K–$21K (Item 7). The franchisor publishes no earnings claim (Item 19) — ask current and former franchisees for real numbers.
To open (Item 7)
$2K–$21K
all-in investment range
Franchise fee (Item 5)
$11K
upfront, one-time
Royalty (Item 6)
—
of sales, ongoing
Your figure — this brand discloses no Item 19 earnings; validate with current & former owners.
Royalty you'd pay / yr
$0
0% of sales, before profit
Over a 10-yr term
$0
royalties alone, excl. ad fund
This is not profit. It's the only money the FDD actually pins down — what you put in, and the royalty you owe on every dollar of sales. Your real take-home depends on labor, rent, food cost, and ramp-to-breakeven, none of which any FDD discloses.
Build a real pro-forma for CRUISE PLANNERS with an independent CPADistress signals
news-sourced · bankruptcies, closures, lawsuits
No recent closures, bankruptcies, or major lawsuits found in the news for CRUISE PLANNERS. That's a good sign — but it reflects news coverage, not a guarantee.
7 questions to ask a CRUISE PLANNERS franchisee
Built from this brand's own disclosures · take it to your validation calls
The franchisor will give you a list of owners to call. Most buyers ask whether they like it. These are the questions built from what CRUISE PLANNERS has actually disclosed — each one carries the number it came from, so you can tell whether the answer squares with the record.
- 01
CRUISE PLANNERS’ own Item 20 shows 173 of 1,795 franchised outlets left the system in fiscal 2015 — about 9.6%. Do you know any of those owners, and do you know why they left?
A franchisor will call these “transitions.” An owner three doors down usually knows whether they sold at a profit or handed the keys back.
FDD Item 20 · FY2015
- 02
CRUISE PLANNERS’ FDD makes no financial performance representation at all — legally, they've told buyers nothing about earnings. What did your first 24 months actually look like, month by month?
When a franchisor won't publish numbers, existing owners are the only source. Silence in Item 19 is a choice, not a requirement.
FDD Item 19 · 2026
- 03
How many months did it take to cover your own costs, and how much cash did you burn getting there?
Ramp-to-breakeven working capital is the most underestimated line in any franchise purchase, and the most common reason otherwise-good units fail.
Not disclosed in any FDD — ask an owner
- 04
Item 3 discloses 2 legal matters. Do you know what those were about, and were any brought by franchisees?
Franchisee-brought suits over territory, fees or support tell you how the franchisor behaves when there's a disagreement.
FDD Item 3 · 2026
- 05
What does the franchisor charge for that you didn't expect — required tech fees, mandatory remodels, approved-supplier pricing?
Required spending appears across Items 6, 8 and 11 rather than in one place, so buyers routinely miss the total.
FDD Items 6, 8, 11
- 06
If your agreement came up for renewal tomorrow at current terms, would you sign again?
The single most predictive question you can ask. A hesitation is the answer.
Ask every owner you speak to
- 07
Who else should I call — including someone who left?
The franchisor's list is curated by definition. Former franchisees are where the unflattering truth lives, and current owners usually know how to reach them.
Ask every owner you speak to
Want this as a checklist you can take to the calls?
I'll email you the printable version, and tell you if CRUISE PLANNERS’ numbers move — a new filing, a rising exit rate, a distress signal. Unsubscribe in one click.
A broker is paid by the franchisor to place you. I'm paid by you — and the job is pressure-testing CRUISE PLANNERS's numbers, including talking you out of a bad deal.
This page is what buyers see before they call you for validation. If the record above is wrong — or right in a way the numbers can't show — say so. Corrections are checked against the filings; nothing you write is published with your name unless you agree to it.
CRUISE PLANNERS franchise questions, answered from the filings
What percentage of CRUISE PLANNERS franchises closed last year?
In CRUISE PLANNERS's latest FDD Item 20 (fiscal 2015), 173 of 1,795 franchised outlets left the system — an annualized exit rate of 9.6%. That counts terminations, non-renewals, and "ceased operations — other reasons." There is no official failure rate, and not every exit is a failure, but this is the measurable floor.
How much does a CRUISE PLANNERS franchise cost?
Per CRUISE PLANNERS's 2026 FDD, buying in requires an initial franchise fee of $11K (Item 5) and a total initial investment of $2K–$21K (Item 7).
Does CRUISE PLANNERS disclose earnings (Item 19)?
No — CRUISE PLANNERS's 2026 FDD makes no financial performance representation in Item 19. That is legal and common, but it means the franchisor publishes no earnings claim; ask current franchisees for real numbers.