Tag Archives: Carnival Australia

Fremantle Princess Cruises

Fremantle To Home Port Princess Cruises

Posted: October 9, 2022

Australia, Press Release, ,

Carnival Australia which represents the world’s most prevalent cruise brands, and represent roughly 80 per cent of the Australian and New Zealand cruise market has declared Fremantle will be utilised as a home port for Princess Cruises after a prior warning it would pull out.

The WA Government’s commitment to fix infrastructure issues helped seal the deal, which will see the redeployment of Sun Princess, with 2,000 guests.

Speaking on sister ship Sea Princess, Premier Mark McGowan said he became aware of the problems after being elected.

“They’d been making submissions to the former government for a considerable period and there’d been no action,” he said.  

“It turned out one of the major issues was the dredging of the channel into Broome Port.  

“The other was pulling up in Geraldton, there was a problem with what’s called the shore tensioning units.”  

The Premier said shore pressure units had been introduced and dredging would happen at Broome next year to permit all-tide access.

Stuart Allison, Princess Cruises’ VP for Australia and New Zealand, said the theme of better access to ports was an issue around Australia.

Mr Allison said the five Sun Princess cruises in October and November one year from now could be the begin of greater things.

“Ultimately our long-term ambition is to bring even larger ships to Western Australia,” he said.  

“Be it the 3,000-guest Ruby Princess, which will be based in Australia from later 2019. Or even the flagship of the Princess fleet, the Majestic Princess — 3,500 guests — which will be based in Sydney from September of next year.  

WA Tourism Minister Paul Papalia said the impact would have been obliterating if Fremantle had lost homeporting of Carnival Australia ships.

“The impact of that would’ve been in a couple of year’s time a reduction of regional port visits by two thirds, and a loss of $135 million of spend,” he said.  

“What we’re talking about today is huge for Fremantle and for the regions. By way of example, this ship has 2,000 passengers, 30 per cent of those passengers have come from interstate, and 12 per cent have come from overseas.”  

Mr Papalia said he was sure environmental approvals would be given for the dredging at Broome, and said the operation itself would just take two or three days.

Regional Development Minister Rita Saffioti said the Government likewise anticipated that it would make an announcement about plans for Fremantle’s South Quay and Passenger Terminal before Christmas.

Majestic Princess Handover Ceremony

Majestic Princess Arrives as Newest Jewel From Fincantieri

Posted: April 3, 2022

Countries, New Cruise Ship, Press Release, ,

Carnival Corporation & plc, the world’s leading cruise vacation company, has taken delivery of Majestic Princess from shipbuilder Fincantieri at an official handover ceremony on March 30 at the shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy.

Majestic Princess is Princess Cruise first luxury ship specifically built for the Chinese market.

She will begin her inaugural season in Europe before repositioning to her new homeport in Shanghai, where she will begin sailing in July.

Princess Cruises’ first international luxury ship tailored for the China market, Majestic Princess will start her inaugural season in Europe before embarking on a repositioning cruise, themed the Silk Road Sea Route journey, to Shanghai where she will begin her first homeport season in July.

The handover ceremony was attended by the Italian Prime Minister, Paolo Gentiloni; executives from Carnival Corporation & plc including Micky Arison, Chairman; Arnold Donald, Chief Executive Officer; Stein Kruse, Chief Executive Officer of Holland America Group; Jan Swartz, Group President of Princess Cruises and Carnival Australia; Anthony Kaufman, Executive Vice President International Operations of Princess Cruises, and Cherry Wang, Vice President and General Manager of the Princess Cruises’ brand offices in China. Fincantieri was represented by Giuseppe Bono, Chief Executive Officer, and Giampiero Massolo, Chairman.

“Majestic Princess has arrived and we are thrilled to add this new jewel to our crown representing the newest, most stylish and most luxurious flagship in fleet, which will deliver an exceptional international cruise holiday experience to our guests,” Princess Cruises Vice President Australia & New Zealand Stuart Allison said.  

Majestic Princess set sail on a preview cruise beginning March 31 through April 4 that will include faithful Princess Circle guests, worldwide media, travel agents, and brand partners.  

Majestic Princess  will depart on her inaugural voyage on April 4, 2022 operating a 5-day Adriatic Sea cruise roundtrip from Rome with stops in Kotor and Corfu.  Following, Majestic Princess will tour Europe on 7, 14, 21, and 28-day voyages from Rome, Barcelona, and Athens.

On May 21, the vessel will embark on the “Silk Road Sea Route” voyage, a 49-day journey from Rome to Shanghai.  During the sailing guests will be able to visit a total of 22 ports before arriving in the new homeport.  Majestic Princess will begin her first cruise from China on July 11, carrying 3,560 guests.

Endorsement For Stage One Of Brisbane’s Second Cruise Terminal

Posted: February 13, 2023

Australia, Press Release, , , , , , , , , ,

The Queensland government confirmed today the tender led by Carnival Australia and Royal Caribbean International to construct a A$100m (US$71m) mega cruise facility at Luggage Point at the mouth of the Brisbane River.

Port of Brisbane Pty Ltd CEO, Roy Cummins, said Brisbane’s second cruise ship terminal would deliver substantial economic and tourism benefits for Queensland.

[pullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]‘We are pleased the Queensland government recognises the need for a mega ship cruise facility in Brisbane and Port of Brisbane’s commitment to delivering the best possible outco mes for the State in the shortest possible timeframes,’ he said.[/pullquote]

[pullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]‘Cruise ships are getting longer and currently there is no dedicated facility in Brisbane to accommodate vessels longer than 270mtrs. By 2020 mega ships will represent approximately 60% of Brisbane’s vessel calls and without a new facility Brisbane and Queensland may miss out on future visits.’[/pullquote]

Cummins said this is Queensland’s opportunity to grow its share of the cruise market.

He said the facility would enable Brisbane to become a base port for international and domestic cruises.

Port of Brisbane will now complete a detailed design and all required environmental and technical investigations, with the final proposal subject to government, PBPL board and key stakeholder approval.

Port of Brisbane will now go through comprehensive assessments of its design and all obligatory environmental and technical surveys.

Carnival Australia applauded the Queensland government’s choice to allow further investigation of the new terminal for Brisbane.

Carnival Australia executive chairman Ann Sherry said Brisbane is one of Australia’s main cruise hubs and ‘deserves a cruise facility that can cater for the growing number of larger vessels in the region.’

Royal Caribbean International regional Vice President Asia Pacific, Gavin Smith, said ‘we are delighted that the Queensland government has recognised the opportunity that the Luggage Point Cruise Terminal provides for the Queensland economy and community.’

Smith said almost all of the company’s ships are restricted to Fisherman’s Island because of height and length restrictions.

He said the second cruise terminal is a prerequisite to the continued growth of the cruise industry in Queensland.

Carnival Australia’s Melbourne Cup ‘Megafleet’ Prepares To Sail

Posted: October 23, 2022

Australia, Onboard Features, , , , , ,

It’s a Melbourne Cup quaddie made in punters’ heaven, with a record four Carnival Australia cruise ships carrying 8000 passengers plus a host of Cup personalities and entertainers, heading to the race that stops the nation next month.

Working out just where to put four superliners – P&O Cruises’ entire current fleet, Pacific Jewel, Pacific Pearl and Pacific Dawn, and Carnival Cruise Line’s Carnival Spirit — is a challenge in itself for Melbourne’s port authorities.

Three of the ships will be at Station Pier but the marine experts have had the slide rules and tidal charts out to enable the fourth ship, the 70,285-tonne Pacific Dawn, to become the first cruise superliner ever to sail under Melbourne’s iconic Westgate Bridge which has a clearance of 50.1 metres and berth well upstream in the Yarra River at Victoria Dock, close to the heart of Docklands.

With a soaring air draft of 47.6 metres, Pacific Dawn will safely pass under the bridge around 7am on Tuesday November 3, with a handy clearance giving passengers a ‘bridge experience’ comparable to sailing under the Sydney Harbour Bridge or Brisbane’s Gateway Bridge.

Pacific Dawn at sea aerial email

Getting so many eager punters to Flemington for their Cup experience is another logistics challenge that would have Army planners scratching their heads but a cavalcade of 164 coaches will take care of transport from wharf to track.

[pullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“Cruising is all about fantastic experiences and having a record four ships sailing to the Melbourne Cup offers thousands of eager racegoers a unique way of experiencing all the excitement of the race that stops the nation,” said Ann Sherry, CEO of Carnival Australia, which accounts for P&O Cruises and Carnival Cruise Line among its seven iconic cruise brands.[/pullquote]

[pullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“Sending a megafleet to Melbourne delivers the biggest single contingent of interstate visitors to the Cup. It really demonstrates Melbourne’s reputation for being the events capital of Australia, with our ships also sailing to the Australian Tennis Open and the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival.”[/pullquote]

Between them, the four ships’ 8000 passengers will be contributing around 8 per cent of the total attendees at Flemington on Cup day – with the megafleet delivering the biggest single contingent of interstate visitors to the Cup (about 14 per cent).

Ms Sherry said the four ships would inject more than $7 million into the economy in passenger and crew spending as well as port charges and fees, with the ships spending a combined 12 days in Melbourne.

Carnival Spirit, Pacific Pearl and Pacific Jewel will sail out of Sydney to arrive in Melbourne in time for the Cup on Monday November 2, while Pacific Dawn sails from Brisbane to arrive early Tuesday. Transfers and general admission to the Melbourne Cup are part of the cruise package for the 8000 passengers aboard the megafleet.

The fleet is also awash with Melbourne Cup personalities and jockeys, Australia’s most famous race caller, fashion and style experts, famous name Australian entertainers and even an actual Melbourne Cup or two with which passengers can get up close and personal.

Attractions on the P&O Cruises’ ships include:

  • Legendary Melbourne Cup jockeys John Marshall and Michael Clarke (Pacific Pearl and Pacific Jewel), owner of Cup winning horse Rogan Josh, Wendy Green (Pacific Pearl and Pacific Dawn); and Bart Cummings’ Flemington track rider Joe Agresta (Pacific Dawn).
  • Popular Australian personalities including Carmelo Pizzino (Pacific Jewel) from Dancing With The Stars, author and radio personality Bianca Dye (Pacific Pearl), and TV presenter Zoe Sheridan (Pacific Dawn) joining their maiden Cup cruises to host P&O Cruises’ Myer Fashions at Sea events.
  • Fashion designer and stylist Katie Perry (Pacific Pearl), stylist Naomi Bell (Pacific Dawn) and Kylie Sultana from the Style Vine (Pacific Jewel), will also sail on their first Cup cruises, offering styling workshops and taking part in the onboard fashion parade.
  • Fascinator-making classes will be hosted by award-winning milliner Kathleen Watson (Pacific Dawn), Melbourne Cup Ambassador and renowned Australian milliner Kim Fletcher (Pacific Jewel) and Serena Lindeman (Pacific Pearl), who created the infamous “million-dollar hat” which took out the inaugural Fashions on the Field.
  • Aussie entertainers Normie Rowe (Pacific Dawn), The Glenn Shorrock Band (Pacific Jewel) and The Tap Pack (Pacific Pearl).

Carnival Spirit will have two of Australia’s leading beauty and style experts onboard – stylist to the stars Penny Hunt and Beauticate website founder Sigourney Cantelo, both former Beauty Editors at Vogue.

Other Cup-themed events on Carnival Spirit include:

  • A ‘Q and A’ session with Australia’s most gifted race caller John Tapp sharing his vast knowledge of Australian racing and amazing tales of Cups past
  • Melbourne Cup tips from popular racing personality Richie Callander with the latest ‘mail’ in passengers’ quests for a likely winner at Flemington
  • A special Cup-themed degustation dinner plus a Mad Hatters’ afternoon tea and a post-Cup recovery lunch

[pullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””] “After this year’s Melbourne Cup there will be just two groups of people in Australia – those who sailed to the Melbourne Cup in 2015 on the Carnival Australia megafleet and those who wished they had,” Ms Sherry said. “It’s a quintessential Australian experience that is just too good to miss.”   [/pullquote]

New Zealand Government Introduces Border Clearance Levy

Posted: October 15, 2022

Countries, Press Release, , , , , , , ,

Australia’s two largest cruise operators, Carnival Australia and RCL Cruises Ltd, have expressed their displeasure at confirmation by the New Zealand Government to press ahead with its Border Clearance Levy.

The new charge will impact all NZ arrivals effective 01 Jan 2016, at the rate of NZ$22.80 (plus GST) for cruise visitors and NZ$18.76 (plus GST) per air passenger, with the money collected to be used to fund border services previously paid for by New Zealand taxpayers.

The move is expected to put further pressure on cruise fares for voyages arriving in NZ.

[pullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]A spokesperson for Carnival Australia told Cruise Weekly: “Operating costs in NZ are already high compared with other destinations in the South Pacific and there is no doubt this imposition of the levy will increase pressure on costs.”[/pullquote]

Royal Caribbean said it was among a number of cruise lines working with CLIA Australasia to negotiate issues surrounding the introduction of the tax. It added it would collect and remit the tax as required and was “working internally” to decide if the tax would impact cruise fares.

[pullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Cruise New Zealand GM Raewyn Tan said the tax is likely to impact the growth rate of NZ cruising. “While the government did respond to our submission of exempting crew, the fact that we have a tax on tourism and where NZ is already a high cost destination, means there will still be a negative impact on our cruise numbers.”[/pullquote]

Tan said she is not certain that the independent economic agency commissioned to analyse the impact of the tax “actually understands cruise”.

She added there will be a review of the levy in 30 months time, and its introduction in less than 90 days means “we’ll need to get the cruise lines working directly with our government officials.

[pullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“The implementation part will be tricky,” Tan said.[/pullquote]

Source: Cruise Weekly