Princess Cruises Announces 129-Night World Cruise From Australia
Passengers can embark in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne or Dover for a route featuring two Panama Canal transits and scenic cruising near Easter Island.
Princess Cruises has announced the 2029 Grand World Odyssey, a 129-night voyage aboard Grand Princess that will be its longest world cruise roundtrip from Australia. The itinerary covers 61 destinations in 31 countries across five continents.
The voyage anchors an expanded 2028-29 Australia and New Zealand program with three ships, compared with the two currently homeporting in Australia. The deployment also restores Melbourne as a homeport and brings Emerald Princess back to Australian waters.
“Our 2028-29 season takes that spirit of discovery to extraordinary new heights,” said Jim Berra, chief commercial officer at Princess Cruises.
World-cruise passengers can embark in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne or Dover, England. The approximately 37,300-nautical-mile route connects Europe, the Americas and the South Pacific, with access to 51 UNESCO World Heritage Sites along the way.
The itinerary includes two passages through the Panama Canal’s expanded locks and nine extended port visits: one overnight stay and eight late departures. Scenic cruising takes the ship near Easter Island and Pitcairn Island, where descendants of the HMS Bounty mutineers live. The voyage also crosses both the Equator and the International Date Line twice.
Three ships and a Melbourne homeport return
The regional fleet also includes Royal Princess and Emerald Princess, whose last Australian season was in 2016-17. Across the deployment, Princess will offer more than 70 distinct itineraries over more than 90 departures, with voyage lengths ranging from two to 46 nights.
The program reaches 42 destinations in six countries across Australia, New Zealand and the wider South Pacific. Its six departure ports are Adelaide, Auckland, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth’s Fremantle port and Sydney, and the schedule includes 17 round-Australia voyages.
Regional itineraries provide access to 10 UNESCO World Heritage Sites and include 11 extended calls with late departures or overnight stays. Attractions include Phillip Island’s Little Penguin Parade and the red cliffs and waterfalls of the Kimberley Coast.
Melbourne’s return follows Princess’s 2023 announcement that it would cease sailings from the city. That decision followed a 15% rise in port charges. Princess ships have continued to make transit visits and single-day calls there during the homeporting absence.
The returning homeport season is projected to generate approximately $40 million for Victoria. Princess also plans to triple its South Australian port calls, with the expanded regional program expected to deliver about $22 million in local economic benefits for destinations including wineries and wildlife attractions.
Bookings for both the world voyage and the regional season open November 10, 2026. Early-booking incentives run through February 16, 2027, and include advance access to dining reservations and arrival groups, plus a complimentary cabin-location upgrade.
Compare Princess Cruises sailings by price on Cruise Lookup.
