Due to the absence of an agreed restart plan for cruising in New Zealand, P&O Australia announced the cancellation of its entires 2022 ex-Auckland/ homeporting season.
The cancellation affects a total of 21 departures that were scheduled to depart from Port Auckland NZ from July 5, 2022, through to November 27, 2022, and is in line with P&O's pause in operations that started in March 2020.
While P&O AU has had discussions with NZ officials to have further contact, uncertainty still remains as to when cruising is likely to restart, which made it difficult to sustain the Auckland cruise season.
P&O Cruises Australia said it looked forward to returning to New Zealand in 2023 for an Auckland cruise season starting in June 2023.
P&O and sister brands remain hopeful of being able to sail to New Zealand from Australia later in 2022.
The company apologizes for the disruption to its guests' holiday plans.
P&O also recognizes the disappointment of its New Zealand travel agent partners and suppliers who are looking forward to the restart of sailings.
Passengers whose bookings are affected by the cancellation will be notified of the options available.