When Carnival Splendor returns to Australia in just a few weeks, lucky guests booked on her first sailing Down Under since the industry-wide shutdown will be able to enjoy a free extra day aboard.
The cruise line has decided to restart Carnival Splendor‘s operations from October 1, 2022, rather than the original planned sailing date of October 2, 2022.
Carnival Splendor to Restart a Day Early
The Concordia-class ship is spending the summer season offering 7-night roundtrip Alaska sailings from Seattle, but is scheduled to depart Seattle to head south on September 6, 2022. A 24-night itinerary will reposition Carnival Splendor to Sydney, Australia, calling on amazing ports in Hawaii and Fiji along the way.
It has been planned that the ship’s first departure from its Australian homeport was to have been on Sunday, October 2, 2022, a 3-night “Getaway” cruise to nowhere, without any ports of call. Now, the cruise line is extending the voyage by setting sail on Saturday, August 1, instead.
“The extension of this cruise is a thank you to our most dedicated guests – those who jumped at the opportunity to welcome Carnival Splendor back with our first passenger cruise in over two years!” said Kara Glamore, president of Carnival Cruise Line Australia. “We can’t wait to celebrate with them onboard and welcome the return of fun to Aussie waters.”
Instead of being simply a cruise to nowhere, the itinerary will now include visiting Moreton Island, Queensland.
Booked guests are being contacted about the departure date change. There is no change to existing cruise fares for current reservations.
If guests are unable to accommodate the earlier departure, they are being offered either a full refund of their booking, or a future cruise credit they will be able to redeem on a sailing of their choice.
Carnival Splendor in Australia
Carnival Splendor began sailing in Australia in 2019, the largest ship the cruise line has ever positioned in the Australian market.
Carnival Splendor weighs in at 113,300 gross tons, measuring 952 feet long, with 13 passenger decks filled with fun. The ship can host 3,012 guests at double occupancy, and as many as 3,948 passengers when fully booked. An international crew of 1,150 officers and crew members offer spectacular service to all aboard.
Carnival announced Carnival Splendor‘s repositioning from North America to Australia in February 2018, with the ship beginning year-round service from Sydney in December 2019. Prior to that major repositioning, the ship underwent a drydock and multiple upgrades to better suit the Australian market.
Carnival Splendor was sailing a variety of Australian itineraries in March 2020 when the industry-wide pandemic shutdown began. At first, the vessel remained in the region in the hopes that cruising would restart.
As it became clear that Australian authorities preferred stricter measures on cruise travel, however, and sailings remained paused, Carnival Cruise Line announced in February 2022 that Carnival Splendor would return to North America to restart sailings in a different region.
The vessel was the last ship in the Carnival fleet to restart passenger operations when she finally began sailing again, welcoming guests in Seattle on May 2, 2022, for the beginning of her Alaska season.
Once that Alaska season concludes in early September, Carnival Splendor will return to Australia, offering eager travelers a range of 3-11 night itineraries with a diverse array of itinerary options, all sailing roundtrip from Sydney. Destinations include New Zealand, the amazing Great Barrier Reef, and many other outstanding ports of call.
