By now you’ve seen the pictures, the videos or (if you’re in Sydney) headed down to the Harbour to check out the breathtaking site for yourself.
Five P&O ships sailed into Sydney Harbour this morning – the most vessels to ever park in the Harbour.
While this alone was a huge feat for P&O Cruises, the shenanigans didn’t stop there, because this morning’s spectacular also saw P&O successfully increase the Australian cruise fleet by two – with the highly anticipated arrival of Pacific Aria and Pacific Eden – and host a first-of-its-kind christening where godmothers Kate Richie and Jessica Mauboy broke champagne and tweeted simultaneously.
I name this ship Pacific ARIA… May God bless her and all who sail in her #5Ships #POCruises ?❤️
— Jessica Mauboy (@jessicamauboy) November 24, 2015
It’s being dubbed the biggest day for Australian cruising and one that’s likely to have a huge impact across the entire sector. How? Well, pretty much all eyes are on P&O’s five-ship fleet and talking about cruising.
“May god bless her and all that sail on her.” @JessicaMauboy @kateritchie01 @POCruises #5ships #Today9 pic.twitter.com/VvBU5hfooU — The Today Show (@TheTodayShow) November 24, 2015
Sydney, which is the biggest market in Australian cruising, received a big HUGE dose of the sector in a fun and unique way.
The newest and best ships available to local cruisers (Pacific Eden and Pacific Aria) are currently being showcased inside our biggest newspapers; millions of viewers woke up to the ships with a live broadcast on the Today Show and the hashtag #5Ship is trending on Twitter, taking social media users to a flood of tweets and images of the new vessels.
If that’s not enough, two of Australia’s biggest celebrities – Jessica Mauboy and Kate Ritchie – have hyped up celebrations to their combined 1.024 million followers on Facebook and Twitter with snaps of them christening the two ships.
AND SO she is named Pacific Eden. May God bless her and all who sail on her. KR x
Posted by Kate Ritchie on Tuesday, November 24, 2015
P&O has successfully exposed one of the fastest growing tourism sectors to millions of Aussies, which will not only benefit the Australian cruise line but also boost passenger numbers for other lines from those with ships as big as Royal Caribbean to the more intimate vessels like Azamara Quest.
Ann Sherry, CEO of Carnival Australia said today marked a new era for cruising.
“The addition of Pacific Aria and Pacific Eden represents a 50 per cent expansion in our guest capacity and heralds a new look and feel for our cruise line, inspired by modern Australia.”
Ann Sherry, Carnival CEO
“P&O Cruises has been sailing from Australia for more than 80 years so we are thrilled to be able to celebrate the expansion of our fleet with so many Sydneysiders today.”
Those in Sydney will have all day to head down to Circular Quay and check out the ships with all five remaining on Sydney Harbour all day.
Onboard guests will enjoy a series of live concerts from more than 25 music acts during the afternoon and evening, including performances by Jessica Mauboy, The Veronicas, Justice Crew, Samantha Jade and Stan Walker.
Catch a WaveSay hello to P&O’s newest batch of Cruiselings. #likenoplaceonearth #pocruises #5ships
Posted by P&O Cruises Australia on Tuesday, November 24, 2015
The celebration will conclude with a special fireworks display above the harbour at 8.45pm.