Princess Cruises announces biggest ever

Princess Cruises has announced a massive expansion in its Australian operations, with the decision to base a second premium superliner, Dawn Princess, in Australia full time.

The 77,000-tonne Dawn Princess will join its twin ship, Sun Princess, in Australia late 2008 in a move which represents the biggest investment ever made in the Australian cruising market by an international cruise line.

Repositioning from North America, the luxury Princess ships will be the largest vessels ever to sail from Australia year round and will visit more destinations than any other cruise line operating  from Australian ports.

Ann Sherry, CEO of Carnival Australia, which operates Princess Cruises in Australia, said the two ships were expected to contribute more than $40 million per annum to the Australian economy through port fees, baggage handling, fuel, food and beverage, as well as passenger spending.

“The dual deployment of Sun Princess and Dawn Princess will bring significant economic benefits, not only to the home ports of Sydney, Melbourne and Fremantle, but to the many towns around Australia and New Zealand the ships will visit during their voyages,” Ms Sherry said.

Ms Sherry said the Australian cruising market had reached a new level of maturity, with the number of Australians choosing to cruise growing 18% in 2006 – twice the rate of North America.

“We believe there is potential for further strong growth here as more Australians discover the pleasures of a cruise holiday,” she said.

Ms Sherry said Princess Cruises’ decision to operate the two superliners, each carrying 1950 passengers, full-time in Australia represented a six-fold increase in capacity between 2007 and 2009.

“Our decision to base Dawn Princess here year-round represents a very significant expansion of Princess Cruises’ Australian operations and a huge vote of confidence in the local cruise market.

“We’ve been overwhelmed with the response to Sun Princess since we announced her deployment earlier this year. Clearly the time is right for two premium superliners for Australia.”

Dawn Princess had initially been slated to operate a five-month season of cruises from Sydney between November 2008 and April 2009 before returning to the US. She will now remain in Sydney offering a selection of cruises to destinations such as Tahiti, Fiji and New Caledonia as well as a 103-day round-world cruise – the longest round-trip voyage ever undertaken from Australia.

“Australians have not had the opportunity to experience the glamour and tradition of world circumnavigation sailing from their home for about 30 years,” Ms Sherry concluded.

Sun Princess and Dawn Princess each offer 975 staterooms – almost half with private balconies – as well as eight restaurants and cafes, seven lounges, four pools and five whirlpool spas.

Both ships offer a premium cruise product tailored for Australians and feature Australian currency onboard as well as itineraries tailored for the Australian market.

Itineraries for Sun and Dawn Princess’ 2009 season will go on sale from January.

A Report by The Mole