09 March 2010

Queen Mary 2 in round-Australia first

Cunard’s Queen Mary 2 will be based in Australia in 2012 for a historic circumnavigation which will see the ship visit five states and the Northern Territory.

Queen Mary 2’s "Royal Circumnavigation of Australia" is a first for Cunard Line.

The largest ship ever to visit Australia, Queen Mary 2 will call at eight Australian ports during its time Down Under including Sydney, Fremantle, Adelaide and the Whitsundays as well as maiden visits to Cairns (Yorkey’s Knob), Darwin, Melbourne and Brisbane.

The circumnavigation will also include a call at Bali.

There will be three circumnavigation options: a 22-night voyage departing Sydney on February 14, 2012, a 20-night voyage departing Fremantle on February 8, 2012 and a 21-night voyage departing Adelaide on February 11, 2012.

In all, Queen Mary 2 will spend 28 nights in Australian waters, as it sails from Cape Town to Sydney via Fremantle and Adelaide, and then circumnavigates the country.

The Australian deployment will be the longest Queen Mary 2 has been based in one country outside of its northern hemisphere homeports of Southampton and New York.

Ann Sherry, chief executive of Carnival Australia which represents Cunard Line in Australia, said the decision was a sign of confidence in the Australian cruise market.

"This one decision will generate at least $10 million for the Australian economy as the local cruise industry remains on track to contribute more than $3 billion and carry one million Australians annually by 2020," she said.

The Royal Circumnavigation will not go on sale until the middle of this year to allow the final itinerary details to be finalised with the various port authorities around the country.