P&O Cruises’ Five Ship Spectacular

‘Today’ Takes To The Seas

The TODAY Show will host a ground-breaking television event on Wednesday November 25, bringing viewers one of Sydney Harbour’s biggest ever maritime events – the live P&O Cruises 5 Ship Spectacular.

With celebrations beginning at 5:30am AEDT & continuing throughout the morning, viewers will see history in the making when 5 P&O ships come together for the 1st time in Sydney Harbour, celebrating the arrival of the Australian cruise line’s latest ships, Pacific Aria & Pacific Eden.

Karl Stefanovic, Lisa Wilkinson, Sylvia Jeffreys, Tim Gilbert & Ross Greenwood will be positioned on the Pacific Aria. Across the water at Fort Denison, Richard Wilkins will host all the entertainment action, joined by the ‘godmothers’ of the 2 ships – singer Jessica Mauboy & actress Kate Ritchie – who will officially name the Pacific Aria & Pacific Eden in a stunning dual christening ceremony during the broadcast.

Stevie Jacobs will be at Mrs Macquarie’s Chair, hosting a big barbecue for those down at the foreshore to watch the 5 Ship Spectacular. Those celebrating the morning with Stevie will also have a chance to win some amazing prizes including a 9-night P&O cruise to the beautiful Pacific Islands.

Lisa Wilkinson says: “Sydney Harbour is without a doubt one of the most beautiful locations in the world. Watching the sun come up as this magnificent fleet moves into formation off Sydney Heads & then enters the Harbour one by one will be breathtaking.”

Karl Stefanovic says: “Everyone loves a big boat – so 5 ships in Sydney Harbour will be massive. We’ll have cameras in exclusive vantage points all over Sydney as the ships come in as well as right in the middle of the action when Jess and Kate name the ships & we see those big champagne bottles smash.”

P&O Cruises Australia Senior Vice-President, Mr Sture Myrmell, said the cruise line was excited to partner with TODAY for the historic broadcast. “This is going to be a day like no other on Sydney Harbour so we’re thrilled that all of Australia will be able to be part of the action with the TODAY Show onboard.”

Join the TODAY Show to watch maritime history in the making: live from 5:30am AEDT Wednesday, November 25.

For more details of P&O’s 5 Ship Spectacular, visit www.pocruises.com.au/5ships

#5Ships #pocruises #Today9

Media Release: Channel Nine

P&O Cruises Australia To Make History As Australian Stars Name Pacific Aria & Pacific Eden By Twitter

In a social media first, P&O Cruises Australia has revealed that its latest ships, Pacific Aria and Pacific Eden, will be officially named by singer Jessica Mauboy and actress Kate Ritchie – via Twitter.

Announcing the identity of the godmothers, P&O Cruises Australia said the popular Australian personalities would both tweet the official naming words in a spectacular dual christening ceremony on Fort Denison as the 2 ships sail either side of the Sydney Harbour landmark on November 25.

The social media launch will also see the naming posted simultaneously on the godmothers’ Facebook and Instagram accounts and shared by P&O Cruises Australia across its platforms.

Ann Sherry, CEO for Carnival Australia, which operates P&O Cruises Australia, said the cruise line was thrilled that 2 famous Australians had agreed to name the cruise line’s latest ships.

“Both Jess and Kate are well known and well-loved around the country. They epitomise modern Australia and really embody the new look and feel of P&O Cruises Australia so we are delighted they will be naming these very special ships – and in such a modern way,” Ms Sherry said.

“It will be a history-making day – we will have 5 ships on Sydney Harbour, a dual christening and we’ll be officially naming the ships via Twitter, which we believe is a world first.”

The ships’ naming ceremony – which will see Jessica Mauboy name Pacific Aria and Kate Ritchie name Pacific Eden – will be a highlight of P&O’s history-making 5 Ship Spectacular on Sydney Harbour on November 25.

The day will begin with the cruise line’s 5-ship fleet creating a V formation off the heads of Sydney Harbour early in the morning, as they meet for the 1st time.

The ships will then enter the Harbour single file, with Pacific Aria and Pacific Eden following their 3 big sisters. As they reach the centre of the Harbour around 8:30am, Pacific Aria and Pacific Eden will sail either side of Fort Denison, where their godmothers will name them and champagne bottles will be smashed on their bows.

The 5 ships will then berth in the Harbour, with 25 artists performing live concerts onboard for guests in the afternoon – including Jessica Mauboy on Pacific Aria. The ships will sail from Sydney in the evening following a spectacular fireworks display for Sydneysiders at 8:45pm.

Jessica Mauboy is an award-winning singer who grew up in Darwin in Australia’s north and shot to stardom in 2006 after appearing on the television show Australian Idol. Her debut 2008 album ‘Been Waiting’ scored double platinum sales and yielded 7 Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Award nominations. She has since won 2 ARIA Awards and has been nominated again for this year’s ARIA Awards.

Kate Ritchie is one of Australia’s best loved actresses, having spent 20 years as a lead on Home & Away, a role which earned her 2 Gold and 3 Silver Logies. Kate currently co-hosts the Australian Commercial Radio Award-winning Nova’s Kate, Tim & Marty national drive show alongside Tim Blackwell and Marty Sheargold. Previously, she co-hosted the extremely popular breakfast radio show on Nova 96.9 with Merrick and Rosso throughout 2008 and 2009 & appeared on Underbelly: A Tale Of Two Cities. Kate has been the host and narrator of Don’t Tell The Bride, she has starred alongside Shaun Micallef and Kat Stewart in the drama Mr & Mrs Murder and in Peter Helliar’s project, It’s A Date.

2 Australian charities will also be the beneficiaries of the event with P&O Cruises Australia making a financial contribution to charities nominated by the godmothers.

Jessica Mauboy has chosen the Indigenous Literacy Foundation as her charity for the event while Kate Ritchie is yet to announce her charity.

Regarded as game changers for the Australian cruise industry, Pacific Aria and Pacific Eden will feature a fresh, contemporary design and a host of special features from multiple restaurants and a lush private dining room to a resort-style swimming pool deck, with sheer curtains and private cabanas.

Media Release: P&O Cruises Australia

P&O Cruises’ Five Ship Spectacular Will Rock Sydney Harbour

P&O Cruises has revealed details of its history-making five ship spectacular which is set to rock Sydney Harbour on November 25.

The cruise line has announced that some of the best known performers in Australia today – Jessica Mauboy, The Veronicas, Samantha Jade, Justice Crew and Stan Walker – will headline a musical extravaganza which will run from mid-afternoon into the evening.

The performers will be joined by 20 other great live music acts across the ships as well as 10 DJs.

More than 9000 passengers will be able to enjoy the special concerts, while all of Sydney will enjoy the unprecedented spectacle of five ships on the harbour, beginning with a Salute to Sydney which will see the fleet form a V off the Heads before they sail single file into the Harbour.

The P&O parade will mark the arrival of the line’s two latest ships, Pacific Aria and Pacific Eden, which will be officially named as they sail by Sydney’s Fort Denison together after arriving in the Harbour. The cruise line will announce details of the ceremony and the ships’ godmothers at a later date.

After their early morning arrival, the five ships will take up their positions for the afternoon of entertainment with Pacific Jewel located at Athol Bay, Pacific Dawn off Garden Island, Pacific Pearl at Point Piper, Pacific Aria berthed at the Overseas Passenger Terminal and Pacific Eden set to be anchored at Neutral Bay after spending the day at White Bay.

Following the concert, guests onboard the ships will enjoy the biggest white party at sea with the cruise line overseeing a mass production of its’ new Bianco event on the top decks of all five ships.

P&O Cruises Senior Vice President, Sture Myrmell, said Sydney has never before hosted five cruise ships on the same day. To celebrate the historic moment, a spectacular fireworks finale will light up the night sky above the cruise cavalcade.

“This will be like no party on Earth and is sure to become an iconic moment in Sydney Harbour’s history as well as providing lasting memories for the thousands of guests onboard,” Mr Myrmell said.

As anticipation for its’ latest ships continues to build, P&O has released a stunning new fly-through video designed to give cruisers a further taste of the future of Australian cruising. Drawing on high-quality renderings, the short video takes viewers on a journey through the interiors of Pacific Eden, revealing more of the ship’s striking décor and exciting new features.

Holidaymakers wanting to enjoy the music spectacular with five headline acts, 20 live performers, 10 DJs and top deck Bianco parties onboard the ships on Sydney Harbour can choose from five cruises including:

A two-night cruise on Pacific Aria sailing from Sydney to Brisbane on November 25 and including a live performance by Jessica Mauboy from $699* per person twin share.
A nine-night round trip Sydney cruise on Pacific Eden departing on November 25 to New Caledonia including a live performance by The Veronicas priced from $1399* per person twin share.
A three-night round trip sea break from Sydney on Pacific Pearl departing on November 23 and including a live performance by Samantha Jade priced from $599* per person twin share.
A four-night round trip cruise on Pacific Jewel from Sydney to the Hunter Valley departing on November 23 and featuring a live performance by Justice Crew priced from $649* per person twin share.
A seven-night round trip Brisbane cruise on Pacific Dawn departing on November 21 with calls to Moreton Island, Eden, Newcastle for the Hunter Valley and a live performance by Stan Walker in Sydney priced from $1349* per person twin share.

About P&O Cruises: The region’s largest and longest-serving cruise operator, P&O Cruises Australia leads the way in cruising as Australasia’s only ‘home brand’ and its’ favourite cruise line. P&O Cruises has been sailing the region for more than 80 years and has pioneered new destinations around Australia, the Pacific and Asia including Papua New Guinea, as reported in The New York Times’ 52 top destinations for 2015. On November 25 2015, P&O Cruises will welcome two additional ships to its’ current three-ship fleet becoming the nation’s largest cruise line with five ships cruising from eight home ports in Australia, New Zealand and Singapore. The addition of Pacific Aria and Pacific Eden has paved the way for exciting new cruise options including deployments from every mainland state in Australia and an extended deployment from Auckland. The pair herald a new era for P&O Cruises, as reflected in its’ new brand repositioning – P&O Cruises, Like No Place On Earth.

Media Release: P&O Cruises Australia