Australia hope for P&O Med season

Australia hope for P&O Med season
By admin


P&O Cruises World Cruising will base a ship in the Mediterranean for the first time next year in a move it expects to appeal to the Australian market.

The Ventura will operate a series of seven and 14-night round trips from Venice between March and October after research revealed a growing appetite for Med-based voyages.

Cruises will take in Rome, Corsica, Naples, Savona – for Florence and Pisa – Kotor in Montenegro, Corfu and Dubrovnik.

P&O Cruises World Cruising managing director Carol Marlow said the Ventura is already the most popular ship among Australians with the Mediterranean deployment expected to drive sales further.

Almost 46,000 Australians cruised in Europe in 2011, a number certain to see an increase when the Cruise Lines International Association Australasia releases its 2012 figures next month.

"Around 20% of our World Cruising passengers are Australian and we will be looking to grow those numbers with Ventura's Fly Med program," Marlow said. "Having a ship based in Europe will make it easier for Australians to hop on board for a week or two."

Fares start from $1749 per person twin share for a two-week cruise.

The move to base a ship in the Med followed research which unveiled sufficient demand to trial a program. Previous studies had shown an entirely ex-UK program would work better, Marlow said.

"We are hopeful it will work well and we'd like to expand the program," she said. "We have a new ship in 2015 and we are looking at where that will be deployed."

Meanwhile, Ventura, which joined the P&O fleet in 2008, is undergoing a refurbishment that will include the addition of 18 single cabins.

The Azure already has single cabins which sell well, Marlow said.

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