Cruises from Australia have officially restarted with the departure of P&O Cruises Australia’s Pacific Explorer from White Bay Cruise Terminal in Sydney.

The ship is sailing a four-night roundtrip voyage to Brisbane, Australia, where it will berth at the new Brisbane International Cruise Terminal. Pacific Explorer will be the first ship to call at the facility, which has been closed since the completion of construction in 2020 due to Covid-19 restrictions.

"It’s more than two years since we have delivered a commercial cruise but, on our recent three-night test sailing from Sydney, Pacific Explorer’s onboard team performed brilliantly," said Maguerite Fitzgerald, president of P&O Cruises Australia and Carnival Australia. “Today is an emotional moment in time for so many people who have looked forward to the resumption of cruise operations in Australia and the rebirth of the AU$5 billion ($3.59 billion) a year cruise industry.”