Carnival Cruise shifts focus from Santo to Mystery Island

March 3, 2025 9:56 pm | Posted in Business News | Share now TwitterFacebook

By Doddy Morris.

Carnival Cruise said it faces challenges with Santo’s remote location, high fuel costs, tight schedules, and travel risks, making Mystery Island a more practical alternative for diversions.

While Port Vila is still closed due to the earthquake last year, the Department of Tourism (DOT) has requested Carnival Cruise to divert some ships to Santo.

Senior Director of Destinations for Carnival PLC,Michael Mihajlov, stated that while the company made one call to Santo in January, another is planned for March, with a likely third visit in May. However, he highlighted logistical difficulties due to Santo’s geographical location.

“We have had direct requests from the DOT to divert our ships to other Vanuatu ports whenever possible. We are pleased to announce that we already diverted one ship to Santo in January, we are making another call in March, and it now looks likely that we’ll make another call in May.

“We want to make it clear that geography is not on our side. Santo is very far north, and we have to come from Brisbane and Sydney, which means very high fuel consumption, very high speeds, and also there are risks associated with making that trip. Losing an engine, for example, would prevent us from making the scheduled time. We face all kinds of pressure to be on time, particularly with the 7-night itinerary from Brisbane; it’s very structured,” he said during the transition of P&O Cruises to Carnival Cruises.

He added that making the diversion to Santo involves a lot of risks, and they have to lobby the business to make these calls. While they are announcing this, he also wanted to provide context for the decision-making process and highlight how Carnival Cruises is contributing as much as possible.

“We will be diverting some calls to Mystery Island. Mystery Island has the advantage of being on the side of the island, so that’s a huge geographic benefit that Santo does not have. That’s why a lot of calls are going to Aneityum; it’s purely geography.”

“So, that’s the reason for the call to Santo. We are looking forward to developing further experiences in Santo. We will have a delegation coming in two weeks’ time for the Australian Vanuatu Business Forum, and part of that will be to establish new product ideas for Santo and try to get more people involved in cruise opportunities there,” he concluded.

Apart from Santo and Mystery Island, Mr. Mihajlov also mentioned that expedition cruises are currently underway, with calls to Ambrym and Pentecost. They made two calls last year to both of those ports.

According to Mr. Mihajlov, these expedition boats are small ships with 250 passengers, built for the poles and have operated in Antarctica and Kimberley.

They only cross the Pacific twice a year, once in each direction.

He said they will explore other potential locations, particularly in the North, such as Ureparapara, which have high potential. It is definitely on their radar.