One of our oldest cruise lines, P&O Australia, is set to close and merge into Carnival Cruise Line next year.
The shock move was announced today in a statement saying: “The world’s largest cruise company, today announced that in March 2025, the company will sunset the P&O Cruises Australia brand and fold the Australia operations into Carnival Cruise Line, the most popular cruise line in the world.”
And in an exclusive interview, Carnival President Christine Duffy blamed Australia and New Zealand’s regulation regime and rising costs for the closure. Read our exclusive interview here.
The Pacific Encounter and Pacific Adventure ships will be rebranded and operated by Carnival Cruise Line brand. Pacific Explorer will exit the fleet in February of 2025.
P&O Australia recently celebrated 90 years of saiings. It’s first journey from Sydney was 1932.
The brand is deeply engrained in the Australian cruise industry and the move is bound to cause sadness and shock among Australians fiercely loyal to the brand. it was known as the “kindergarden” because so many started cruising on the ships.
The statement maintained it was “the latest in a series of strategic moves designed to increase guest capacity for Carnival Cruise Line, the company’s flagship brand and the highest-returning brand in Carnival Corporation’s global portfolio.”
The statement quoted Josh Weinstein, chief executive officer of Carnival Corporation & plc, as saying: “P&O Cruises Australia is a storied brand with an amazing team, and we are extremely proud of everything we have accomplished together in Australia and the broader region.
Weinstein went on: “However, given the strategic reality of the South Pacific’s small population and significantly higher operating and regulatory costs, we’re adjusting our approach to give us the efficiencies we need to continue delivering an incredible cruise experience year-round to our guests in the region.
“Carnival Corporation & plc remains committed to Australia and we will continue to be the largest cruise operator in the region with 19 ships calling on 78 destinations and representing almost 60% of the market.”
Together with Costa Cruises folding three vessels into Carnival, this will mean eight new ships for Carnival Cruise Lines.
“Despite increasing Carnival Cruise Line’s capacity by almost 25% since 2019 including transferring three ships from Costa Cruises, guest demand remains incredibly strong so we’re leveraging our scale in an even more meaningful way by absorbing an entire brand into the world’s most popular cruise line,” Weinstein said.
Current itineraries will operate business as usual, and guests will be notified in the coming days of any changes to future bookings as a result of this announcement.
When the transition is complete next year, Carnival Cruise Line – which has served the South Pacific since 2013 – will have four ships in the market, including Sydney-based Carnival Splendor and Carnival Luminosa sailing seasonally from Brisbane, in addition to their new sister ships Encounter and Adventure.
“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,” said Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line.
“While we plan to make some technology upgrades and other small changes to the two P&O Cruises Australia ships, they will continue to be geared to the unique Australian market with a familiar feel and much of the same experiences for P&O Cruises Australia guests.
“The most notable change will be the availability of our popular HubApp, enabling guests to make online dining and excursion reservations, request food and beverage delivery, and chat with other guests, among other features. P&O Cruises Australia guests will also be invited to participate in Carnival’s loyalty program and promotional offerings specific to Carnival ships sailing in the region.”
“Over the coming months, we will find ways to celebrate and honor P&O Cruises Australia – a valued part of our legacy and an important contributor to the tourism industry in the South Pacific,” said Weinstein. “We value the connection our P&O Cruises Australia guests, employees, travel advisor partners, public officials and destinations have with our company and are committed to building on this association moving forward as Carnival.”
Carnival Corporation & plc is the largest global cruise company, and among the largest leisure travel companies, with a portfolio of world-class cruise lines – AIDA Cruises, Carnival Cruise Line, Costa Cruises, Cunard, Holland America Line, P&O Cruises (Australia), P&O Cruises (UK), Princess Cruises, and Seabourn.
Will this affect a cruise I have booked on the adventure in May2025 through p&o.
I am also a players club member. How will that be affected
So sad seeing the famous iconic P&O brand be swallowed up. 90 years as well … to not make to 100 years celebration even more upsetting.
I have been cruising P&O since i was a child, a May school holiday family Islands cruise on Oronsay in mid 70s… to present times.
The memories, and celebrations enjoyed aboard with my own children are wonderful to recall. The crew we have met also felt like family too, I hope they remain on the ships.
Glad to see Island night has returned… should never have been removed.
Good Luck to everyone but I will definitely miss seeing those classic beautiful ships with P&O livery .
Will it be $USD on board? I will never set foot on a Carnival again ,veteran of 62 cruises and 6 more booked
Very disappointed to hear our cruise has been cancelled it was given to us as a gift for our 50th anniversary not really given many options
With P&O now becoming Carnival, will the demerger of P&O/Princess Cruises loyal points demerge and will the P&O points port over to be classified with our Carnival VIFP points?
Short and straight to the point. As usual only the East coast will benefit and Adelaide misses out. Travelling to a cruise in Brisbane will cost us return airfares plus a night in a hotel as travelling on the same day as departure cannot be guaranteed. Our cruise next year has been cancelled so we will have a refund and fly from Adelaide to Auckland to visit our relatives. I only hope that the new cruises will be affordable like the current P&O.
Will all our princess loyalty points be transferred to carnival
I have to agree with John & Ruth.
Whenever we query their silly decisions, we will still get the same answer of “MIAMI says so”.
Have been on P & O (UK) and loved them. Was on Exployer at Christmas time and would never do it again.
Carnival probably could make improvements across all ships.
So now we can get free burgers and free pizzas and free ice cream! And we don’t have to contend with the weird ways P&O do their dinner sittings/reservations.
This feels like a US headquartered organisation thinking it knows what is best for another country’s devoted clientele.
P&O Australia is loved by its people; that doesn’t transfer to Carnival.
The differences between the two brands is what makes each one desirable.
Get rid of P&O Australia and past cruisers have no need to go Carnival. They can easily consider Royal, take their first look at Holland American or NCL.
Even with the neglect of the current P&O fleet, the following is strong.
Wiser tactical decision is to give P&O Australia it’s on Aussie management, improve the fleet so it meets its potential and become a serious competitor to the rest of Carnival, Royal and NCL.
P&O Australia is at a lower fare entry point; this opens the market for another Cruiseline running older ships, quality food, enthusiast entertainment to come in and pickup the clients that can not afford Carnival cruises.
BAD MOVE CARNIVAL AUSTRALIA !!
P&O was & is far superior to what the tired old Carnival offered
Australians, such as poor hygiene standards along with base line menus. Also unlike Carnival America who willingly offer Military Personnel special Defence Benefits in the form of Cabin Credits,the Australian Carnival management are mean streaked& disrespectful to Veterans with no such benefits. P& O Australia have set a high standard which we have found lacking in Carnival Australia’s management.
Looks like Royal Caribbean will be the winners out of this poor decision .
I only go on the P&O for the short comedy cruises. For the longer cruises, I choose better cruise lines with more class and less bogans. lol.
This is like having a duoply in the supermarkets. The prices of cruising can only go up so they can boost profits, as that is what big business is all about. Good to know who they own so we can look elsewhere to our cruising holidays i have only ever been on one Carnival branded ship and never again. I have been cruising since early 70s and that was on the P&O Himalaya.
Hopefully the loyalty points from P &O continue to count towards princess cruises
last year i went on a cruise on p& o pacific adventure and also carnival splendour and while both ships were great the food and entertainment on pacific adventure was much better than carnival splendour .i plan to go on the same cruise next year on pacific adventure and hope it is the same
This comes as a surprise. P&O Australia were currently doing advertising for the new branding of ships.The good side is that we now earn loyalty points which was never the case with P&O Australia. {Apart from when cruise days could be used with Princess} Sad to see P&0 go all the same.
Why all this fuss? Carnival has owned P&O for years. Is it just to sell off one of their ships currently used in the region, and to re-name the other two, just as they renamed the “Costa Luminos”, to “Carnival Luminosa”, when they took over the Costa line? They presumably have statistical evidence (number of ships, number of passengers per annum, etc.) to support the claim to be the biggest cruise line in the world, but “most popular” I think not. A veteran cruiser myself, I avoid Carnival ships like the plague after having experienced Carnival’s version of poor old Cunard and have never known any of my acquaintance to speak highly of travelling on Carnival. Carnival’s sole interest in the Australian cruise industry is to make more money:that is why they have ended the homeporting in Australia of Cunard ships and why they have today announced the decision to unload the “Pacific Explorer”.
Well I think it shows no respect for history and it is currently making cruises from Australia americanised which is not what Australian people want all they want is money not what the cruising fraternity want
Will the P&O and Princess loyalty transfer remain? Will Carnival Cruise Line now recognise Princess and P&O levels?
Will the loyalty points accrued via P&O be rolled over to Carnival?