Brisbane Terminal on hold

THE closure of the Queensland border and the three-month extension of the Australian Government’s cruise ban (CW 04 Sep) has put paid to any hopes that the new Brisbane International Cruise Terminal will open on schedule.

The $177 million facility, which has been jointly funded in partnership with Carnival Australia, was timed to open on 03 Oct, just a month before the upcoming Qld state election.

However News Corp reports now speculate that it may not open until “at least Mar or Apr, possibly later” if the foreign cruise ship ban is extended again.

An update from the Port of Brisbane last week highlighted the recent delivery of two Passenger Boarding Bridges (CW 15 Jun), adding “we’re committed to ensuring the Brisbane International Cruise Terminal is ready for when the authorities, in consultation with the cruise industry, determine that cruising can safely resume in Queensland”.

A website tracking the Terminal’s construction noted originally 180 cruise ships had been scheduled to call during the facility’s first season over the upcoming summer, with it “designed to cater for the biggest cruise ships in the world and give passengers a world-class experience”.

The News report cites Cruise Lines International Association Australasia MD Joel Katz, who noted delays caused by the extensive preparations involved in restarting cruises, including bookings and sourcing F&B.

“These are long lead times and even if we were signing off on a restart today, it wouldn’t be until the end of the year, Nov or Dec, that those ships would be able to get back to Australia,” he said.

The first departure had been scheduled as P&O’s Pacific Dawn which was due to sail on 03 Oct.

With the current biosecurity order ban in place until 17 Dec, the first voyage from the new facility could now be a Carnival Spirit seven-day Pacific Islands cruise scheduled for 20 Dec.