P&O Cruises Australia extends pause in operations further

Thursday, September 23, 2021

P&O Cruises Australia has decided to extend its pause in operations even further for cruises departing from Sydney and Brisbane by a further month until mid-January next year. The line said the decision was designed to give guests greater confidence in planning their Christmas and New Year holidays because of the uncertainty around the return of cruising.

The pause will apply to cruises scheduled to depart from December 18 through to January 14 for Brisbane, and January 18 for Sydney. The line also confirmed it was cancelling its Melbourne summer season, which was no longer feasible to deliver because of the latest extension.

Sture Myrmell, President, P&O Cruises Australia said in a statement that the company understands that the decision is disappointing for guests who were looking forward to cruising with friends and family over Christmas and New Year, however, the line had to make the announcement as early as possible to ensure they could plan with certainty for the holiday period.

Meanwhile, the line recently announced its intention to resume domestic operations with cruises for fully vaccinated guests and crew. The president mentioned that governments have made it very clear that vaccination thresholds are the key to ending lockdowns, border restrictions and, ultimately, re-opening Australia.

He said that part of returning to normal society is ensuring that the more than one million Australians who choose a cruise holiday each year have the opportunity to do so again. However, he shared that the cruise line is not yet clear on the requirements from governments and public health authorities for a phased return of domestic cruising, but remain hopeful these conversations will gather pace now there is real momentum around society re-opening.

On the other hand, Princess Cruises is extending its pause in cruise holidays in Australia and New Zealand to January 27, due to the uncertainty around the return of cruising in the region. As a result of the pause extension, Coral Princess voyages through January 17th are cancelled and Royal Princess and Sapphire Princess seasons through to March are being cancelled.

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