Crown Princess Opens Australia’s 2026-27 Cruise Season

Crown Princess is set to officially open Australia’s 2026-27 international cruise season when it arrives in Sydney today, Wednesday, with the vessel scheduled to berth at the Overseas Passenger Terminal at 6 a.m.

Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) expects more than 20 major cruise brands to operate across the region during the upcoming season.

Crown Princess will enter Sydney Harbour through the Heads around dawn before sailing past the Opera House and docking at Circular Quay. The vessel is scheduled to depart again at 6:45 p.m. It will then embark on a 35-night roundtrip cruise featuring calls in Brisbane, Fiji, Samoa, Hawaii, French Polynesia and Auckland before returning to Sydney on Oct. 7.

The Sydney arrival will also mark the conclusion of the ship’s 114-night world cruise, which departed Australia in May and visited 44 destinations.

The itinerary took Crown Princess to Northern Europe, Iceland, Canada and the U.S. East Coast before continuing through the Panama Canal to South America and Easter Island. The ship then crossed the South Pacific on its return to Australia.

Built by Fincantieri and entering service in 2006, the 113,561-gross-ton Crown Princess accommodates approximately 3,090 passengers and 1,200 crew members. The 19-deck vessel features around 1,545 staterooms.

“We expect dozens of international ships to join our contingent of locally based and seasonally deployed vessels,” said Joel Katz, managing director of CLIA Australasia.

CLIA global President and CEO Charles “Bud” Darr is also due to deliver the keynote speech at a gala lunch in Sydney attended by representatives from cruise lines, ports and the travel sector. Discussions will focus on Australia’s cruise market and its future, including challenges surrounding infrastructure and operating costs.

Australia’s cruise industry generated $7.32 billion in economic output during the 2024-25 season and supported 22,720 full-time-equivalent jobs.