Princess Cruises to Double New Zealand Port Calls From 2028-29
The plan was disclosed as Crown Princess arrived in Waitemata Harbour at the start of a 2026-27 season expected to bring about 660 cruise ship calls nationwide.
Princess Cruises plans to double its New Zealand port calls from the 2028-29 season, expanding its program across nine destinations and adding voyages that begin and end in Auckland. Princess disclosed the plan as Crown Princess arrived in Waitemata Harbour at the start of a 2026-27 season expected to bring about 660 cruise ship calls nationwide.
Cruise lines generally settle ship deployments 18 to 24 months in advance. New Zealand deployment remains more than 40% below its peak as of April 2026, and passenger volumes are forecast to fall 19% in 2025-26 after a 28% reduction the previous year.
Princess adds calls across nine destinations
The expanded schedule will cover Auckland, Wellington, Tauranga, Napier, Lyttelton, Dunedin, Picton and Timaru, along with Fiordland. Some itineraries will operate round trips from Auckland, although Princess has yet to publish the complete voyage schedule. The line has nine New Zealand voyages on its 2026-27 schedule.
Princess Cruises Vice President Asia Pacific Matthew Rutherford said the additional calls would bring more passengers into regional communities, “creating opportunities for tourism operators, hospitality businesses, retailers, and local economies.”
Minister for Tourism Louise Upston called the expansion “a vote of confidence in New Zealand as a cruise destination,” adding that additional visitor spending would support businesses and employment around the country.
Costs continue to weigh on deployment
New Zealand Cruise Association chair Tansy Tompkins has cited port charges, biofouling requirements, visa fees and border-clearance costs among the factors affecting the country’s competitiveness. Limited hull-cleaning facilities and shore-power availability have also influenced deployment decisions.
Commercial vessels must demonstrate compliance with New Zealand’s biofouling rules before arrival. The updated Craft Risk Management Standard has applied since Oct. 13, 2023, with compliance pathways including continuous hull maintenance or inspection and cleaning within 30 days before entering the country.
The government has added cruise to its Tourism Growth Roadmap and established a Cruise Forum to improve coordination with the industry. Tompkins has said certainty, competitiveness and trust are central to cruise lines’ decisions about where to place ships.
What cruise spending is worth
Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment research valued cruise-related spending during the 2023-24 season at approximately NZ$648 million. The sector supported 8,790 jobs and contributed NZ$572 million to gross domestic product.
Wider tourism has recovered more quickly. International tourism expenditure reached NZ$18.1 billion in the year ended March 2025, an increase of 7%, while tourism accounted for 7.7% of national GDP. Auckland is expected to receive more than NZ$200 million in cruise-related economic activity during the 2026-27 season.
Ship assignments remain open
Princess has not identified the vessels that will operate the expanded program. Sydney’s published cruise terminal calendar currently lists Grand Princess, Royal Princess, Island Princess and Emerald Princess from late 2028, but those entries are subject to change and are not confirmed deployments.
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