Carnival Opens Bookings for 112 Australian Cruises in 2028-29
Carnival Encounter will operate a Brisbane solar eclipse cruise in July 2028, while Carnival Splendor’s Sydney program includes a Melbourne Cup sailing that November.
Carnival Cruise Line has opened bookings for 112 voyages in its 2028/29 Australian program. Carnival Splendor will sail year-round from Sydney and Carnival Encounter, which joined the Carnival fleet in 2025, from Brisbane. The release extends the line’s published schedule through mid-2029.
The itineraries cover the South Pacific, Far North Queensland, New Zealand and Tasmania. A new 13-day sailing from Brisbane to New Zealand aboard Carnival Encounter joins a schedule that includes six New Zealand voyages between mid-2028 and mid-2029.
“We expect our 28/29 program to be incredibly popular with first time cruisers and families and friends wanting a fun, great value holiday option,” said Anton Loeb, Carnival Cruise Line’s assistant vice president of sales and marketing.
Loeb encouraged early reservations and described Carnival as “the only cruise line sailing in Australia all year.”
Bookings are available through Carnival’s Australian website and travel agents. The program announcement did not list starting fares.
From eclipse cruises to island cabanas
Carnival Encounter will operate a solar eclipse cruise from Brisbane in July 2028, while Carnival Splendor’s Sydney departures include a Melbourne Cup cruise in November 2028.
For passengers seeking shorter trips, the release includes 23 three-day getaway cruises across the two homeports. Carnival is promoting those departures to first-time cruisers as an opportunity to try a cruise before committing to a longer holiday.
The Sydney schedule also includes 18 voyages to Tangalooma-Moreton Island. Guests on those sailings can book beachfront cabanas at the new Tangalooma Dunes Cabana Club, where cabanas are reserved exclusively for Carnival passengers while the line’s ships are visiting the island.
From Brisbane, Carnival Encounter has 12 cruises calling at Airlie Beach. Its Mutiny on the Bounty itinerary to Fiji also returns as part of the release.
Carnival Splendor is scheduled to enter dry dock in August 2028. It will return to service afterward to operate the remainder of its 2028/29 program.
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