Carnival Corp to Absorb P&O Cruises Australia into CCL

As of March 2025, P&O Cruises Australia will be absorbed into Carnival Cruise Line, effectively sunsetting the Australian brand. As a result of the merger, the CCL fleet will grow by two ships. A third P&O Cruises Australia ship will exit the fleet.

According to parent company Carnival Corporation & plc, the change is the latest in “a series of strategic moves designed to increase guest capacity for Carnival Cruise Line, the company’s flagship brand and the highest-returning brand” in the company’s portfolio.

“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…” said John Weinstein, CEO of Carnival Corp & plc.

In 2019, CCL accounted for 29% of the parent company’s total capacity. By the second quarter of 2025, the brand will account for 35% of the total capacity.

“While our company’s overall growth between 2019-2028 is projected to be less than 2% (CAGR-compound annual growth rate), the majority will be for Carnival Cruise Line…” Weinstein added.

The two new ships joining the Carnival Cruise Line fleet will be the Pacific Encounter and Pacific Adventure. Both will be rebranded. The third P&O Cruises ship, Pacific Explorer, will exit the fleet in February 2025. The ships will remain in the Australian market, alongside the two existing Australian CCL ships: Carnival Splendor and Carnival Luminosa.

“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,” said Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line. “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. The most notable change will be the availability of our popular HubApp, enabling guests to make online dining and excursion reservations, request food and beverage delivery, and chat with other guests, among other features. P&O Cruises Australia guests will also be invited to participate in Carnival’s loyalty program and promotional offerings specific to Carnival ships sailing in the region.”