Launch of Australia’s Largest Cruise Season

In what appears to be a brand/name change, Australia’s largest cruise company, now calling itself Carnival Australia says that Australia is sailing into a bumper summer cruise season, with all eyes on the horizon for the arrival of the biggest cruise liner the nation has ever seen.

The massive 151,400-ton Queen Mary 2 will make her only Australian call in Sydney on February 20, 2007, when she will rendezvous amid fireworks with her ‘littler’ sister, the 1900-passenger Queen Elizabeth 2, providing a spectacle on Sydney Harbour expected to draw thousands of sightseers.

Carnival Australia will oversee the majority, or what some might call a virtual monoply of cruise shipping activity around Australia this summer, with eight ships visiting from four cruise lines – P&O Cruises Australia with vessels based in Australia, P&O Cruises World Voyages, Princess Cruises and Cunard Line.

Together the eight ships represented by Carnival Australia will offer 67 cruises between the start of the peak cruise season on November 10 and its close on April 24. The ships will make 153 visits to Australian ports – a record for the company.

Carnival Australia President Gavin Smith said the four cruise lines would offer a combined bed capacity of 14,600 beds in Australian waters this summer on ships ranging from the 30,000-ton boutique liner Pacific Princess to the Queen Mary 2, a megaliner five times bigger.

Mr Smith said the rapid growth of P&O Cruises’ own market in Australia was fuelling the local cruise boom, adding “In 2003, P&O Cruises in Australia offered 50,000 beds a year on one local ship and in 2008 we will have more than 150,000 beds on three Australia-based ships,”  “This season is a big one, literally, with the historic arrival of Queen Mary 2 and Queen Elizabeth 2 together and the 2007/08 cruise season will be even bigger again.

Australia continues to be a hot destination for overseas passengers while record numbers of Australians are choosing to holiday at sea with us.”

Latest deals for the cruise season:

Pacific Star – 7 night South Pacific cruises from Brisbane during summer from A$1195* per person

Pacific Princess – 11-night South Pacific cruise dep Sydney February 17, 2007, from A$2819* per person

Sapphire Princess –12 night cruises from Sydney to NZ through summer from A$1750* per person

Oriana – 14-night voyage from Brisbane to Hong Kong, dep February 19, 2007, from A$3710* pp

Queen Mary 2 – 14 nights from San Francisco to Sydney dep Feb 5, 2007, from A$5938*per person

Call Carnival Australia on 13 24 69 or visit www.pocruises.com.au  

* Fares are cruise only based on complete twin share.

Report by The Mole