Cruise ship holidays flagged to bolster Queensland tourism industry

Annastacia Palaszczuk says she would like to see cruise ships filled with vaccinated Queenslanders travel along the coastline as she works with companies to restart the decimated industry.

Cruise ships could return to Queensland waters within months with Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk preparing a plan to restart the decimated travel sector, but there is little detail about when travellers can expect to climb aboard.

At a press conference held at Pinkenba’s Brisbane International Cruise Terminal, the site of a new vaccination hub, Ms Palaszczuk said she would prepare a plan which could allow Queenslanders to cruise along the sunshine state’s coastline.

Brisbane International Cruise Terminal remains almost unused as the tourism industry has been decimated by the pandemic. Picture: Richard Walker

“What I’d like to see is … a plan where we could perhaps start to see some Queensland-based small cruises,” she said.

“We’ll be working with the industry to see how we could progress that and we’ll be putting that to the national cabinet.”

The $177m Brisbane International Cruise Terminal has sat empty since its opening in October 2020 as Covid-19 decimated the sector.

COVID-19 press conference with Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk at the new Pinkenba Vaccination Centre, Brisbane International Cruise Terminal. Picture: John Gass

The first ship lined-up to dock at Pinkenba should have been Carnival Cruises’ Pacific Dawn last October, instead it was the Navy’s HMAS Choules last month.

Ms Palaszczuk said fully-vaccinated Queenslanders could trial the smaller cruises up and down the Queensland coast, but declared the proposal was still “a few months off”.

“I know how much Queenslanders love their cruises, I was just in Hervey Bay and Bundaberg, and they were talking to me about how much they missed that,” she said.

Separately, Ms Palaszczuk would not say whether Queenslanders should be allowed to travel overseas when international borders open before Christmas.

She said the Queensland Government would work alongside the tourism and cruise industry to ensure compliance with Covid-safe plans.