History was made at the Port of Brisbane yesterday, with the new Brisbane International Cruise Terminal (BICT) welcoming its first ever cruise vessel to the facility.

P&O Cruises’ Pacific Explorer arrived at 7.30am, ushering in a new era for cruising in Queensland.

“It’s been a long wait, but we are extremely proud to have finally welcomed the Pacific Explorer to the new, $177 million Brisbane International Cruise Terminal,” Port of Brisbane CEO Neil Stephens said.

“It was a fantastic sight to see the Pacific Explorer alongside the BICT’s wharf, and then watch hundreds of passengers stream through the facility on their visit to Brisbane.

“Yesterday was a great start, and a really exciting indicator of what’s to come.”

Following the berthing of the vessel and the disembarkation of passengers, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, Deputy Premier Steven Miles, Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner and Carnival Australia President Marguerite Fitzgerald joined Mr Stephens to officially open the facility.

“This project has involved a lot of stakeholders over a long period of time,” Mr Stephens said.

“We worked very closely with the State Government to deliver this project through its Market-Led proposal framework. And through the same process we worked collaboratively with Council on a number of issues, including local road connectivity.

“We thank them, and may other stakeholders, for their support.

“In particular, this facility wouldn’t be here without the strong support of Carnival Australia. They have been on the journey with us since day one, and have made a significant, long-term commitment to the BICT and to cruising in Queensland. We’re incredibly appreciative of the partnership we have with Carnival Australia.

“After a lot of waiting, and a lot of hard work, it was wonderful to see the facility finally being used as it was intended – providing our cruise line customers and their passengers with a world-class welcome into Brisbane.

“And this is just the start, with another 21 calls scheduled before the end of September and over 170 current bookings for the 2022/23 cruise season from 1 October 2022.  We’re excited about what’s ahead.

“The BICT will be the epicentre of cruise line investment in the economy for a long time to come and will bring economic prosperity not just to our region, but to regions up and down Queensland’s coastline.

“We’re very proud to play such an important role in Queensland’s economic growth and the successful resumption of cruising in the state.”