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New Cruise Era Begins as P&O Formalises Contract for First New Ship

P&OCruises Australia has marked a major milestone in the creation of its first newship, finalising its contract with shipbuilder Fincantieri in Italy on theweekend.

Launchingin 2019, the 135,500-tonne vessel will be the first cruise ship builtspecifically for the Australian and New Zealand market.

Thelargest ship to join P&O Cruises' fleet, the new build will carry more than4200 guests, offering double the capacity of the biggest cruise vesselcurrently homeporting year round in this market.

P&OCruises President Sture Myrmell said the finalisation of the contract for thenew build heralded a new chapter for cruising in Australia.

"Thisis a very proud moment for P&O and a significant step forward in ourcontinued growth in this market," Mr Myrmell said.

"Ournew build will be a ship like no other, reflecting the tastes of modernAustralia and building on the ongoing evolution of P&O Cruises' product inrecent years. We are incredibly excited to be creating this ship and can't waitto reveal details over the months ahead."

Measuring323 metres in length and with 2100 guest rooms, the new ship will be based yearround in Australia, and will offer itineraries from three to 10 days duration.

Thefinalisation of the contract follows the announcement late last year of amemorandum of agreement between P&O's parent company, Carnival Corporation& plc and Fincantieri for five new ships including P&O Cruises' newbuild. As the world's largest travel and leisure company, Carnival Corporationhas an existing fleet of 100 cruise ships and a total of 16 new ships scheduledfor delivery between 2016 and 2020.

Thecreation of Australia's first new build forms part of the ongoing expansion of P&OCruises Australia, which saw the addition of two ships – Pacific Eden andPacific Aria – last year, taking the present fleet to five ships.

P&Owill also take delivery of another ship, the refurbished 2000-guest PacificExplorer, in May next year, while the smaller 1600-guest Pacific Pearl willdepart the fleet in April.

"Withan average annual 20 per cent growth in passenger numbers over the past decade,Australia is one of the fastest growing cruise markets in the world. Our expansion will not only help meet surgingdemand, it will also drive future growth by enticing more Australians toholiday at sea," Mr Myrmell said.

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