Carnival Corporation & plc, the world’s largest cruise company, announced that in 2025 it will absorb P&O Cruises Australia into Carnival Cruise Line, the largest cruise line in the world. This move will bring the number of ships to eight added to Carnival Cruise Line’s fleet since 2021. This includes three ships from Costa Cruises–Costa Luminosa, Costa Venezia, and Costa Firenze– added in 2022, 2023 and 2024 respectively.
“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,” said Josh Weinstein, chief executive officer of Carnival Corporation & plc.
Currently, P&O Cruises Australia operates three ships–Pacific Explorer, Pacific Adventure and Pacific Encounter. Pacific Explorer is the cruise line’s oldest and smallest ship and will be retired in February 2025. Pacific Adventure and Pacific Encounter will be rebranded and become part of the Carnival Cruise Line fleet bringing its total to 29. The company also placed a new ship order for two new Excel-class cruise ships to join the fleet in 2027 and 2028.
Once the realignment is complete, Carnival Cruise Line will have four ships sailing in the South Pacific, including Carnival Splendor and Carnival Luminosa.
President of Carnival Cruise Line Christine Duffy said, “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. 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.”
Some of the most notable changes will be the availability of the HubApp which allows guests to make reservations online, chat with other guests, order food and drinks for delivery and more. P&O Australia guests will also benefit from Carnival’s loyalty program and promotions available to Carnival ships sailing in the South Pacific.
Weinstein concluded, “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. 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.”