 Carnival Adventure departingSydney, Australia, on 11 April 2025 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 Bahamas | |
| Name |
|
| Owner |  Carnival Corporation & plc |
| Operator |
|
| Port of registry |
|
| Ordered | January 1998 |
| Builder |
|
| Cost | US$425 million |
| Yard number | 6050[1] |
| Launched | 31 August 2000[2] |
| Sponsored by | Merlisa George |
| Christened | 17 April 2002 |
| Completed | 2001 |
| Maiden voyage |
|
| In service | 2001 |
| Homeport | Sydney,Australia |
| Identification | |
| Status | In service |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Grand-classcruise ship |
| Tonnage | 109,000 GT[1] |
| Length | 290 m (951 ft 5 in)[1] |
| Beam | 36 m (118 ft 1 in)[1] |
| Draught | 8.05 m (26 ft 5 in)[1] |
| Decks | |
| Installed power | |
| Propulsion | 2 ×diesel-electric propulsion motors producing 19,000 kW (25,000 hp) each[citation needed] |
| Speed | 23 knots (43 km/h; 26 mph)[1] |
| Capacity | 2,600 passengers[2] |
| Crew | 1,100[2] |
| Notes | [4][5][6][3] |
Carnival Adventure is aGrand-classcruise ship operated byCarnival Cruise Line. The ship was previously namedGolden Princess andPacific Adventure. She was built by Italian shipbuilderFincantieri atMonfalcone, delivered in 2001, and christened by Merlisa George inSaint Thomas in April 2002. While operating asGolden Princess, she has sailed to all seven continents, beginning with her debut inSouthampton in May 2001, followed by seasonal deployments serving regions around the Caribbean Sea and Europe. In 2007, shecircumnavigated South America and debuted along theWest Coast of the United States before also sailing around ports in Asia and Oceania bordering the Pacific Ocean until 2020. In 2017, Carnival Corporation announcedGolden Princess would be transferred from Princess to sister brandP&O Cruises Australia as a part of P&O's fleet renewal. AsPacific Adventure, sailing itineraries included those around Oceania along with her sister shipPacific Encounter. In 2024, Carnival Corporation announced that P&O would be integrated into its sister line,Carnival Cruise Line, in March 2025 and cease to exist. As of March 2025,Pacific Adventure was transferred to Carnival and renamedCarnival Adventure respectively.[7]
Princess made several changes to the design ofGolden Princess compared withGrand Princess, including a modifiedstern. Princess commissionedGolden Princess to have similar dimensions toGrand Princess: they both measure 109,000 gross tonnage (GT) and have an approximate capacity of 2,600 passengers.[8] Additionally, they have a length of 290.0 metres (951 ft 5 in), adraught of 8.05 metres (26 ft 5 in), and abeam of 36 metres (118 ft 1 in).Golden Princess is powered by a diesel-electricgenset system, with sixSulzer engines: four producing 11,520 kilowatts (15,450 hp) and two producing 8,640 kilowatts (11,590 hp). Main propulsion is via two diesel-electric propellers. The system gives the vessel a maximum speed of 23knots (43 km/h; 26 mph). The ship has 1,299 passenger cabins and 627 crew cabins. She has a maximum capacity of 4,160 passengers and crew.
On board,Golden Princess retains much of the design ofGrand Princess, aside from several changes. Instead of the slantedbulkheads of the tiered decks below her sister ship's navigationbridge, she has flat bulkheads.[9] Additionally, in order to reduce the ship's weight, she features a modified stern made of lighter materials, particularly in the "handle," which housed the ship's nightclub.[9]
In January 1998, Princess announced it was ordering two additionalGrand-class ships at a cost of approximately US$425 million each from Italian shipbuilderFincantieri for delivery in 2001.[8]
The first ship, namedGolden Princess, wasfloated out on 31 August 2000 atMonfalcone.[10] She sailed her maiden voyage on 16 May 2001.[11] She was originally planned to be christened byJane Seymour on 12 October 2001,[12] but was later christened by Merlisa George,Miss US Virgin Islands 2002, on 17 April 2002 inSaint Thomas.[13][14]
The 2019–2020 season marked the last active season that the ship sailed asGolden Princess. She began with weekly Alaska voyages in summer 2019[15] before returning to Melbourne in fall 2019.[16] In March 2020, during a round-trip sailing fromMelbourne to New Zealand amid theCOVID-19 pandemic, three passengers were quarantined onboard after one was suspected of having thecoronavirus when they began developing symptoms.[17] At the time of the announcement, the ship was bound forAkaroa[17] and proceeded to anchor inAkaroa Harbour to allow for medical officials to test the guests, who ultimately tested negative.[18] The remainder of the voyage was subsequently cancelled and the ship was cleared to return to Melbourne, following the Australian government's ordinance for all cruise ships to return to their homeports.[19] The ship returned on 19 March 2020 and all guests finally disembarked around 6:00pm after some of the guests were tested earlier in the day, and none of those tests returned positive.[19]Golden Princess was scheduled to perform a full season of Alaska voyages from Los Angeles in summer 2020[20] and a finaltranspacific crossing toSingapore in fall 2020,[21] but due to the pandemic, all sailings of the ship were suspended.[22] There were rumors of the vessel possibly being sold for scrap instead of being transferred to P&O Australia, but Carnival Corporation denied the rumors and later did transfer the vessel.[23]
P&O Cruises Australia, as a part of its "fleet enhancement plan."[24] The new ship, scheduled for delivery in 2019, would become P&O's first-ever new-build vessel and its largest ship overall in the fleet.[24] However, in December 2016, the order for the new ship was transferred to sister brandCarnival Cruise Line (CCL) in exchange forCarnival Splendor joining the P&O fleet instead.[25] In a statement, P&O president Sture Myrmell conceded that the market's current infrastructure and its anticipated pace of development would be inadequate to support the brand's earlier, more ambitious expansion goals.[25] But in September 2017, Carnival issued a further fleet realignment, announcingGolden Princess would transfer to P&O, withCarnival Splendor continuing to operate for CCL.[26] In September 2018, after hosting an online naming contest, P&O announcedGolden Princess would be renamedPacific Adventure and debut in October 2020, featuring modified accommodations and onboard facilities designed in-line with the P&O brand.[27]
In October 2018, P&O unveiled the inaugural schedule forPacific Adventure, with cruises of various lengths from Australian ports, visiting New Zealand,Fiji,Papua New Guinea, and other destinations in Oceania, beginning in October 2020.[28] However, the COVID-19 pandemic led P&O to halt its operations, and this delayed the ship's debut until 2022. Australian cruises were suspended in March 2020, with the ban finally being lifted on 17 April 2022.[29] The ship was transferred in October 2020, but she did not enter service until 2022 because of theCOVID-19 pandemic.[30]
Golden Princess transitioned into P&O's fleet in 2022 asPacific Adventure, her guest capacity has been increased to 2,636, with modifications including the addition of five-berth cabins.[27] P&O also invited the public to contribute suggestions in order to design a more family-oriented experience on the ship.[31] New features added consisted of a new adults-only lounge space[27] and a recreational park.[31][32] Renovations were completed inTrieste in fall 2021.[33]
On 28 May 2023, at approximately 3:30AM, while off the east coast of Australia on a three day cruise fromSydney a fire broke out on a passenger balcony on the port side of the ship.[34] All passengers were mustered and the fire was extinguished. This incident was the second balcony fire to occur on aGrand-classcruise ship.Pacific Adventure's sister shipPacific Encounter (then known asStar Princess) experienced abalcony fire in 2006 resulting in significant damage and the death of a passenger.[35]
On 6 May 2024, a passenger onPacific Adventure was reported to have gone overboard just after 4:00AM about 10 nautical miles (19 km; 12 mi) off Sydney Heads. The ship's arrival into Sydney was delayed while the area was searched. Four helicopters, including the Police Airwing and two Westpac helicopters were involved in the search, as was another shipCarnival Splendor. A body was later retrieved from the water.[36][37][38][39]
In June 2024, Carnival Corp. announced P&O Cruises Australia would be closed[40] and absorbed into Carnival Cruise Line from March 2025, impacting all ships of the P&O fleet.
Pacific Adventure was rebranded into Carnival Adventure in March 2025, following the closure of the P&O Cruises Australia brand. The ship received bespoke Carnival branding, including a Carnival brand-mark on its funnel, breaking from tradition. Internally, some areas received branded updates while technology upgrades were completed[41] in order to support Carnival's hub app.[42] The ship continues to operate out of Sydney year round alongsideCarnival Splendor, althoughCarnival Adventure will operate out ofMelbourne for one month in 2027.[43]
