Carnival Group, one of the largest cruise groups in the world, has announced that it will be closing down the P&O Australia cruise brand in 2025.
The move comes as the group looks at ways of expanding the Carnival Cruise Line fleet faster than possible through new builds alone.
Two of the three ships in the P&O Australia fleet will be absorbed into the Carnival fleet – Pacific Adventure and Pacific Encounter. Both ships measure around 109,000 gross tons, putting them at a similar size to the Conquest-class ships already sailing for the fleet.
The third P&O Australia ship, Pacific Explorer, will not be absorbed into the cruise line and will either be sold or scrapped – no decision has been confirmed.
We look forward to building on the history and heritage of P&O Cruises Australia by bringing some of our innovations to more cruise guests in the region.
Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line
The two ships, following their rebrand, will remain in the South Pacific region and continue to serve the Australasian cruise market. While some Carnival features will be added to the ships, they will retain their unique feel aimed at Australian and New Zealander cruise passengers.
The big changes will be the addition of the Carnival Hub app to the ships, to allow guests to make dining and shore excursion reservations, and the application of Carnival’s VIFP loyalty program.
The new additions to the Carnival fleet will ultimately help take it to 31 ships, once the next Excel-class ships also launch in 2027 and 2028 respectively.
While the exact timeline hasn’t been revealed, the P&O Australia brand is expected to cease in early 2025, with Pacific Explorer due to end sailing in February.
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Jenni Fielding is the founder of Cruise Mummy. She has worked in the cruise industry since 2015 and has taken over 30 cruises. Now, she helps over 1 million people per month to plan their perfect cruise holidays.
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Changing to Carnival will mean the charges on board will be in USD which is not great conversion with AUD at the moment
Sad day to hear the demise of P&O Australia.
Another nail in the coffin of the great historical Pacific and Orient cruise line.
Is P&O and Cunard still 100% British ? And is Princess cruises still part of P&O ?
No one can give me a definitive answer 🥲