Victoria’s battered cruise industry is finally staging a comeback, with Princess Cruises set to homeport a ship in Melbourne for the first time in years, as political parties promise the sector will not be forgotten after years of neglect.
Luxury liner Crown Princess sailed into Port Phillip Bay on Sunday, marking the first ship to dock at Station Pier for Victoria’s 2026/27 summer cruise season.
Princess Cruises also announced they will be homeporting a yet-to-be unveiled ship in Melbourne for the 2028/29 season.
The move signals a huge step in rebuilding an industry left decimated by Covid and then hit with tax hikes under the Victorian Government.
Ports Victoria CEO Craig Walker said Princess Cruises officially kicked off the summer cruise season on Sunday, October 11.
“We’ve started the cruise season for 2027 right now, with the Crown Princess,” he said.
“We’ve got a good sort of forward booking for the next few years.”
He added the new homeporting bookings would have a huge impact for the state.
“If you go back and have a look at the last Cruise Line Industry Australia numbers back in 2024/25, it estimated about $400m to the economy in Victoria around having those cruise ships in 2024/25 so if we take that and project that forward, it’s a significant number.”
The comeback follows a bruising few years for the industry after the Victorian Government’s 15 per cent increase in site occupation and berthing fees at Station Pier, which came in 2024.
At the time, former Premier Jacinta Allan described the increase, imposed by state authority Ports Victoria, as “modest”, but it triggered a major pullback by cruise operators and costing the state economy tens of millions of dollars.
Carnival Australia said at the time the rise “doesn’t sound like a lot” but was significant because “a port call in Melbourne already is one of the highest in the world”.
Australia’s largest cruise operator responded by axing two Melbourne port calls for the 2025/26 season and redeploying ships elsewhere, a blow that came as the industry was still reeling from Covid, with rival ports in Queensland and NSW luring operators with more appealing offers.
On Sunday, Princess Cruises Vice President APAC Matt Rutherford said the return of Crown Princess signalled a turning point for the state.
“(Melbourne) is one of Australia’s great cities and one of the great cruise destination of the world,” he said.
“Guests want to visit Melbourne and we’re also picking up guests from Melbourne.”
He added that it was a beautiful day to launch the season with one of the biggest and best ships, the 290m Crown Princess.
It towers 59m above the water and can carry 3080 passengers and 1200 crew, and spans 19 decks with a casino, art gallery, and 10 dining options including an Irish themed pub.
It will dock in Melbourne as part of a 28-day round-Australia voyage, with stops including Adelaide, Fremantle, Broome, the Kimberley Coast, Darwin, Cairns and Brisbane before returning to Sydney.
VTIC CEO Lisa Patroni said the new season was promising but cautioned the industry needed more support from the future Victorian Government.
“Victoria has a great opportunity to attract more cruise ships to our shores. Getting the infrastructure right and keeping costs competitive will help us welcome more visitors and grow the benefits for our visitor economy,” she said.
Opposition Tourism spokesman David Southwick said the Coalition had big plans for the sector if it won government in the November election, but stopped short of making a direct promise.
“Victoria’s visitor economy for years and ignored the value it brings to our state,” he said.
“Under a Liberal and Nationals Government we make the visitor economy a priority economic sector and support the sector to grow into a $70 billion industry.”
Ports minister Melissa Horne pointed to the Princess Cruises announcement as proof the government’s approach was working.
“Princess Cruises’ have today announced that they will be homeporting one of their ships in Melbourne for the 2028/29 season – supporting local jobs.”
She added that the state has also refurbished Station Pier with essential upgrades so it can continue to support Victoria’s growing cruise ship industry, and bookings for the 2028/29 season were up 32.4 per cent.
Victoria is expecting 120,000 visitors through Station Pier during the 2026/27 summer cruise season.
But the state still lags well behind its rivals nationally.
In 2022-23, the cruise industry contributed $5.6 billion to the Australian economy – with NSW the major beneficiary, pocketing $2.7 billion, and Queensland attracting $1.7 billion.
Victoria, by comparison, managed to reel in just $379 million.
The industry was also dealt a huge blow during Covid, when ships were grounded for months on end.