Come March 2025, British and American cruise operator Carnival Corporation will fold its P&O Cruises brand in Australia, after nearly a century on the waters, into its Carnival Cruise Line brand. This move is part of a strategic realignment to optimise Carnival's brand portfolio and enhance operational efficiencies.
Eva Stewart, global sector head of travel and tourism observes, "With this consolidation there are a lot of positives for the parent Carnival brand – it aims to leverage Carnival Cruise Line, Carnival Corporation’s highest-return brand, to achieve the efficiencies and market presence they seek in Australia. By integrating P&O’s operations, Carnival hopes to streamline processes, reduce costs, and enhance service offerings with new technologies like the HubApp, which allows guests to manage reservations and communicate onboard.”
Focussing on P&O Cruises, a majority of Australians (92%) haven’t holidayed with the cruise line in the past two years. Less than one in ten (8%) have.
Awareness: Cruise brands in Australia
The soon-to-be-sunset P&O Cruises Australia tops awareness levels among Australians, compared to its competitors.
YouGov data shows that among the top five cruise companies Australians are most aware of, three belong to Carnival Corporation.
Nearly three fourths of all Australians (74%) have heard of P&O Cruises, followed by Royal Caribbean Cruises (69%) and Carnival Corporation owned Princess Cruises (69%).
Another Carnival Corp. cruise brand, Carnival Cruise Line, isn’t too far behind - 65% of Australians surveyed have heard of the company.
Travel intent
More than one in five Australians (21%) say they’re more likely to travel with Carnival Cruises after the P&O Cruises absorption next year, while 15% say they are less likely to travel with them.
“Carnival’s strong brand recognition and customer base could potentially lure more international cruisers to the Australian market, thereby increasing demand and profitability. However, this move also risks alienating P&O's loyal customer base, who may not appreciate the change and could perceive a drop in service quality or a shift away from the unique P&O experience. Balancing the benefits of increased operational efficiency and capacity with the need to maintain customer loyalty and satisfaction will be crucial for Carnival’s success in this transition."
Further, Carnival Cruise Line is most likely to find increased favor among 25-to-34-year-olds (32%) after absorbing P&O Cruises next year, YouGov data reveals.
It makes good sense for the travel company then to target this demographic in the months to come, until March next year when P&O Cruises will finally be taken off waters.
But more generally, what possibly keeps this cohort from considering a cruise vacation?
YouGov data reveals that 25-to-34-year-olds share several cruise-related concerns with the general Australian population – but not all. These include factors like cost, health concerns and crowd worries. But 25-to-34-year-olds are more concerned about the duration of the cruise, compared to the general population (27% vs. 23%).
Further, not having a companion to travel with concerns nearly a quarter (24%) of this group. Perhaps offering group cruise trips can help them overcome this obstacle?
P&O Cruises boasts of impressive awareness levels and brand recognition among Australians. Notably, with the brand’s upcoming absorption into Carnival Cruise Line, a significant proportion of Australians are more inclined to travel with the cruise company. With this opportunity at hand, parent company Carnival Corp. can perhaps address larger concerns about cruise holidays, to potentially convert hesitant travellers into their customers.
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Methodology: Data figures have been weighted by age, gender, and region to be representative of all adults in Australia (18 years or older), and reflect the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) population estimates.
Photo by David Dibert on Pexels
