Pacific Explorer hosts business chiefs

THE top echelon of the NSW business community gathered onboard P&O’s Pacific Explorer last night, with the ship docked at Sydney’s Overseas Passenger Terminal hosting its first formal event in more than two years.

The Business Sydney reception featured NSW Minister for Tourism, Stuart Ayres (pictured with CLIA MD Joel Katz) along with cruise leaders such as Carnival Australia President Marguerite Fitzgerald, her predecessor Ann Sherry and many other senior members of the corporate sector.

Business Sydney Executive Director, Paul Nicolaou, thanked attendees for helping to “rejoice the homecoming of the cruise industry in Australia after two years of forced COVID lockdown”.

Ayres highlighted the current economic situation and in particular the low unemployment rate, saying that means “you’ve got more people with dollars in their pocket to spend.. that’s more people travelling on holidays and more people booking cruises”.

“It is an incredibly exciting time; the mere presence of this ship in this spectacular location sends a really strong signal,” he said.

“We all know we’re going to have to live alongside COVID, so let’s set the rules, let’s let consumers make decisions, let them understand what they’re buying and put the decision back in their hands.

“That’s exactly what we’ve done here in NSW, that’s why this ship is here...and why the long journey we’ve all been on in the last two years is seeing much brighter days ahead,” Ayres said, adding that the engagement of Explorer’s crew with guests was “telling everyone that Sydney and Australia are open for business”.