Royal Caribbean To Open Pacific Private Island

Royal Caribbean has revealed details regarding their private destination in Lelepa in Vanuatu.
This will be the first of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere, and provide a new stop on Aussie South Pacific itineraries for Royal Caribbean.
Here are all the details so far on when it will open, what it will look like and what can be found there.

After a lengthy wait, we finally have some of the details on what Royal Caribbean’s private destination in Lelepa will be like.

Opening in early 2027, Royal Caribbean’s private destination on the small island that is part of Vanuatu will be open for cruise calls.

The destination will use up 42 acres of the island as it becomes the first private cruise destination in the Southern Hemisphere.

Interestingly, Royal Caribbean’s destination development team has noticed Australians have their own tastes, and might not be as keen for the resort and theme park type feel that other Royal Caribbean private destinations have. Rather, Aussies might want something that emphasises the local nature, community and culture.

Royal Caribbean’s Chief Product Innovation Director Jay Schneider told Cruise Critic and some other journalists that: “Connection to nature for Australians and New Zealanders in the South Pacific is super important.

“So you’ll find a very different look and feel here.”

This appears to be quite different from the initially touted designs.

It’s been a long journey for keen Aussie cruisers to see this project start to come to fruition.

It was initially announced in October 2019, and it was said that it would take three years to build. But the project had some roadblocks in negotiating with the locals, and then with the pandemic.

News was thin on the ground for many years, and then it was revealed that the project would no longer be a ‘Perfect Day’ experience, but rather a private destination experience.

Lelepa renderings — How the island will look.

What we know so far

Here are few of the things we know so far about what will be found on the private island destination.

It will be a tender port: Guests will have to take a tender to the port rather than docking directly at a wharf. Getting off at the island, and a number of activities on the island, will be completely free for guests. The port will be designed to take about 5000 passengers, enough for ships like Quantum of the Seas. It’s expected that most, if not all, of the cruise line’s South Pacific itineraries will make a stop there.
Lelepa will be made up of separate ‘villages‘: The destination will have distinct villages, which offer a different feeling to different parts of the property. The exact details aren’t known yet, but a couple of different beachside villages.
Look forward to a floating bar: As can be seen in the renderings, the island will have a floating bar, allowing passengers to swim out at the beach, then hoist themselves up to the bar and enjoy a drink offshore.
There will be snorkelling: Lelepa has a great snorkelling area just off its shore, the cruise line is still looking at how to best maximise access to this, but guests can look forward to enjoy classic South Pacific snorkelling during their day at Lelepa.
Walk on a nature trail: Something distinct to Lelepa when compared to other Royal Caribbean private destinations is that it will have its own nature trail. This will be considered a major attraction of the destination and will be both especially curated, and fitted out with basic infrastructure like hydration stations, to allow Aussie cruisers to enjoy the nature they love.
Expect local shops: As guests get off their tender, they’ll pass by Mama’s Market, an area filled with products from local retailers, who will have handcrafts, souvenirs and more that reflect the local area. Restaurants on the island will also take their influence from the local culture, offering South Pacific cuisine, as well as classic dishes.

Year-round cruising?

A long-time hope for Aussie cruise faithfuls has been that when Royal Caribbean develops Lelepa, they’ll pivot to year-round cruising off Australian shores, something that they’ve never done before.

While the cruise line is yet to offer any indication that this will be the case, it was a positive sign that they reinstated a Quantum–class ship out of Brisbane for the 2026/2027 season, which will now hopefully have some sailings actually re-routing to visit the new destination at Lelepa.

Royal Caribbean’s Australian season normally lasts about six months, rather than stretching year round like three of the ships of Carnival Australia.

The South Pacific is a very popular winter destination for Australians who want to escape back to the sunshine, and many Aussies will be hoping that Royal Caribbean could soon reveal that it’ll have a ship on our shores round the clock all year.