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P&O Cruises Announces First Cruise Calls to Fraser Island

Inanother spectacular development in its suite of cruise itineraries, P&OCruises today announced that it will next year make two calls to World Heritage-listedFraser Island, the world's largest sand island located off the southernQueensland coast. <?xml:namespace prefix="o" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"?>

PacificAria and Pacific Eden -- the two latest additions to the P&O Cruises fleet-- will call at Fraser Island on April 3 and December 12 respectively, thefirst of a number of calls to the Island which boasts some of the world's mostmagnificent scenery, wildlife and visitor experiences.

Thecalls to Fraser Island, one of 15 regional destinations in Australia pioneeredby P&O Cruises in recent years, are an exciting part of the line’s soon tobe released cruise program for its five-ship fleet (with the arrival inNovember of Pacific Aria and Pacific Eden).

Thefirst two Fraser Island cruises will be on the 1500-guest Pacific Aria on aroundtrip itinerary from Brisbane in April and on the 1500-guest Pacific Edenon a roundtrip cruise from Sydney in December.

Bothcruises are being conducted in conjunction with the world renowned KingfisherBay Resort which

offersa range of eco-friendly four wheel drive tours of the island along its beachesand 1500km of tracks.

“FraserIsland's Indigenous inhabitants gave their island home a name that meansparadise and our cruise passengers will have the opportunity to discover thisfor themselves,” said Ann Sherry CEO of Carnival Australia which operatesP&O Cruises, one of seven cruise lines in the company's house of brands.

“VisitingFraser Island by cruise ship with its 184,000 hectares of diversity frompristine beaches, lake and sand cliffs to rainforests will be a uniqueexperience for our cruise travellers. We are delighted to be working with theQueensland Government, Queensland National Parks, Kingfisher Bay Resort and theFraser Coast Region to make sustainable cruise tourism part of Fraser Island'svisitor experience.”

QueenslandMinister for Tourism Kate Jones welcomed the announcement and said it was greatto see P&O Cruises expand its offering to include Fraser Island, off theback of recent announcements of Mooloolaba, Hamilton Island and Gladstone.

“We’llnow see more visitors enjoying Fraser Island’s natural beauty, which is greatnews for local tourism operators. We hope that the incredible experiencesvisitors will have on Fraser Island make them want to return to Queenslandagain,” Ms Jones said.

KingfisherBay Resort Group General Manager David Hay said the partnership with P&OCruises would deliver increased tourism opportunities across the Fraser Coast.

“Thedomestic cruise market has grown significantly in recent years and we welcomethis exciting opportunity to attract more visitors to Fraser Island and theregion,” Mr Hay said.

“TheFraser Coast has some incredible products and experiences to offer our domesticand international visitors and it is pleasing to see this potential beingrecognised by major companies like P&O Cruises,” Mr Hay said.

Media Contacts:

Carnival Australia –David Jones 02 8424 8861

Brooke Hargraves –Kingfisher Bay Resort 0419 647 752

For moreinformation visit pocruises.com.au, or see a licensed travel agent.

Notes to editors: Theregion’s largest and longest-serving cruise operator, P&O Cruises Australialeads the way in cruising as Australasia's only 'home brand' and its favouritecruise line. P&O Cruises has been sailing the region for more than 80years, and has pioneered new destinations around Australia, the Pacific andAsia including Papua New Guinea, as reported in the New York Times’ 52 topdestinations for 2015. On November 25, 2015, P&O Cruises will welcome twoadditional ships to its current three-ship fleet becoming the nation’s largestcruise line with five ships cruising from eight home ports in Australia, NewZealand and Singapore. The addition of Pacific Aria and Pacific Eden has pavedthe way for exciting new cruise options including deployments from everymainland state in Australia and an extended deployment from Auckland. The pairherald a new era for P&O Cruises, as reflected in its new brandrepositioning - P&O Cruises, Like no Place on Earth.

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