Disney Cruise Line revealed plans on the horizon for a full-time ship based in Japan by 2028 and the potential return of Disney Wonder to Australia and New Zealand at last week’s Cruise360 2025 conference in Brisbane.
As reported, Disney Magic at Sea sailings in Australia and New Zealand will conclude after the upcoming 2025-26 season – but Disney Destinations Vice President, Marketing & Sales International Jeff van Langeveld said it is only farewell – for now.
Disney Cruise Line will add two more ships by the end of 2025 to the existing six-ship fleet: Disney Destiny (November) and Disney Adventure (December).
“Talking about how much growth is underway and planned over the next five to 10 years, when I think about Disney in particular, we have big plans for growth,” van Langeveld said.
Disney Cruise Line has committed to a five-year contract with Singapore Tourism Board, homeporting its newest and largest ship, Disney Adventure, from December 2025.
“We are committed to that port for five years for year-round sailing. We selected Singapore for a number of reasons, but one is: it’s a central location, and just being able to really provide a Disney experience fairly close to home, or relatively close to home to a lot of new audiences,” he said.
“As I look to the future, we’ve announced that in 2028, we will be bringing a ship to sail in Japan full-time. So, another great addition to the APAC region.”
It’s part of regional expansion plans with Disney Adventure to offer year-round sailings from Singapore, targeting South-East Asia, China, India, Taiwan, Japan and South Korea as well as Australia and New Zealand. DCL will partner with Oriental Land Co to launch the new Japanese-flagged ship in Japan.
The move highlights the strategic importance of the region for Disney Cruise Line.
“We know Australia and New Zealand will fly to Singapore as a popular destination for this region, and we have made the decision to relocate the Disney Wonder for the consecutive season four,” he said.
Van Langeveld highlighted the importance for advisors to understand the product for successful sales, drawing on his personal learnings from his first-ever Disney cruise experience.
“Know your product incredibly well, and then know your target audience. It could be your current customers or you’re going after new audiences,” he said.
“But know that audience well, because they certainly have different needs, and for you to be able to kind of match that right product and that right experience, you have to know what those needs are, who the decision makers are, what their barriers and motivators are.”
DCL currently has a limited-time deal with 50 per cent off the third and fourth guest on select Australia and New Zealand 2025-26 sailings on sale until 12 October 2025.
For more on Cruise360 2025, head here.
For more info, head to disneycruiseline.com/aunz
