As Eden becomes a cruise powerhouse, here are the small Aussie ports that could be next

• Eden is celebrating 20 years of cruise ships, and they have plenty to celebrate about.
• The town will see a massive 27 cruise ships come through for the 2026/27 season.
• Here are the ports that could be ‘the next Eden’ if they’re properly developed and promoted.

Eden is not only celebrating 20 years of cruising, but can do so knowing that cruising out of Eden has never been stronger.

Throughout 20 years the small coastal town has welcomed around 200 ships, but that number is about to get a lot larger.

Eden has provided the blueprint for other smaller coastal port towns around Australia, on how to invest in infrastructure and rally the local community around cruise and its economic benefits for the town and region.

While large cities like Sydney and Melbourne benefit from cruise ships and the associated tourism, for smaller towns like Eden it can truly transform the local economy.

The town has a population of just over 3000 people, but will tens and thousands of tourists over the coming years, as ships like Anthem of the Seas, Disney Wonder, Norwegian Spirit, Azamara Onward, Grand Princess, Royal Princess and more come through.

For the 2026/27 season, Eden will see a massive 27 cruise ships come past its shores.

These ships will pour millions of dollars into the local economy, providing a huge boost for the town and the wider region.

These big ships are able to visit due to consistent rallying by the town for more cruise infrastructure, and a committed volunteering force that keeps guests happy and wanting to come back.

This work provides the blueprint for other small ports around the country, which with the combination of infrastructure developments, local enthusiasm and governmental support, could become a force in the Australian cruise industry, just like Eden has. 

Getting cruise tourism dollars out to more Aussie ports and promoting more Australia based itineraries is a win-win for everyone. It means more jobs for Aussie industry workers, suppliers, tourism workers and more. It also helps show the government the value of cruise tourism to Australia, where high volumes of tourists can reach remote areas that they generally wouldn’t think to visit by land.

Burnie

The small Tassie town of Burnie has a population of about 20,000 people but as the second biggest port in Tasmania, it sees some big ships. Over the coming season cruise ships like Norwegian Spirit, Viking Orion and Noordam. It’s a fantastic destination, surrounded by nature and wildlife, the only problem lies in its infrastructure. It can only take cruise ships up to 240 metres in length. This rules out Carnival, Princess and Royal Caribbean ships, the three most prolific cruise lines in Australia. In general, Burnie’s port infrastructure is severely outdated, and upgrades could see Burnie reach the rapid success that Eden did.

Port Lincoln 

With a population of around 17,000 people, Port Lincoln can take big cruise ships and offers local Aussie fauna, world class beaches, famous seafood and even its famous cage-diving experiences with great white sharks. Carnival Adventure will actually visit in 2027, showing that the port is equipped for big ships, but it only has one visit scheduled. Port Lincoln has the makings of a great port, but it will need some moderate facility upgrades and a local marketing drive to replicate the success of a port like Eden. 

Albany 

The small WA town of Albany has a population of just over 40,000 people, and generally sees a few cruise ships coming through each season, mostly smaller, luxury ships. However, Norwegian Spirit also visits the port, and occasionally Princess ships do as well. Albany will get a boost in the 2027/28 season as Princess visits a few times on ‘around Australia’ itineraries. However, the cruise line won’t actually visit Albany on its sailings out of Perth, with its Perth sailings rather heading north, or only as far south as Margaret River. Albany is actually currently seeing port upgrades, and with more support, it could surely land on more cruise itineraries.

Esperance 

Just five hours along from Albany, Esperance is one of the most picture perfect parts of Australia, with perfect bright blue waters, a famous pink lake, plenty of local fauna and more. Norwegian Cruise Line will visit the town of around 15,000 people in the 2027/28 season, marking their first visit to the port. While Esperance is low on cruise infrastructure and serves as more of a commercial port, its natural beauty and location mean that the port has huge potential if it were to undergo upgrades. Esperance and Albany sit between Adealaide and Perth, making them perfect stops for cruises out of either city, or as stops on larger circumnavigation cruises around Australia.

Geraldton 

Another Western Australian port, Geraldton is a town crying out for cruise. It was on the verge of its largest cruise season ever, when 12 ships had to cancel due to regulatory changes, which devastated the town. The port can handle large vessels and was hoping the new Princess itineraries would send ships to its shores, but the new itineraries didn’t include Geraldton. The town of around 40,000 people is the perfect example of an Aussie town that could benefit from cruise and offer plenty to cruise passengers, but work has to be done to get it back onto the itineraries of major ships.