Luxury French cruise ship to call Darwin home

The ship is the first to home berth in Darwin in four years. It is also the largest expedition cruise ship to ever home port in the Territory.

Home porting allows passengers to arrive a day or two before their cruise and extend their stay after their cruise providing an important economic boost to the Top End.

Ponant will run its new, sell-out Kimberley cruises from its Darwin port with an estimated 1,500 cruise ship passengers expected during the stay plus a further 136 crew.

The l'Austral will return to home port in Darwin again in July 2018.

45 cruise ships are expected to visit the Top End in the 2017-18 season, including a return of the biggest cruise ship to ever visit Australia, Ovation of the Seas, in April 2018.

Tourism NT is working to implement the Northern Territory Cruise Sector Activation Plan 2015-2020, to maximise the benefits of cruise shipping to the Territory.

Find out more about our Cruise Sector Marketing here.