Pacific Adventure arrived Monday

This week on 23 October, the cruise ship P&O Pacific Adventure visited Norfolk Island. The ship arrived and anchored at Cascade Bay, and everyone was excited when the Norfolk Island Radio staff announced that the passengers would be coming ashore at Cascade Pier.

The transfer vessels were driven out to the cruise ship as they prepared to ferry the passengers from the ship to shore. This was the sixth P&O Cruise ship this year which has been able to unload the passengers and the last cruise ship was the P&O Pacific Explorer which visited Norfolk Island just over a month ago in September.

“Mutiny On The Bounty Cruise” on the Pacific Adventure

This October – November 2023 cruise is a fifteen-day voyage of the Pacific. The vessel departed Sydney on the 20 October 2023, the first stop was at Norfolk Island on Monday 23 October. As they departed our friendly shores, they enjoyed a cruise of tropical islands and will return back to Sydney as a final stop on 4 November 2023. I hope they avoid TC Lola which was a Cat 5 cyclone in the Vanuatu region of the Pacific this week and was forecast to reduce in strength as it drops down to New Caledonia.

History buffs take note: highlights of this cruise include visiting the locations where Mutiny on the Bounty took place in 1789. A guest lecturer will bring history to life, telling the story of this famous seafaring saga. You’ll travel past Nomuka Island where Bligh visited the day before the Mutiny occurs. You will

also cruise past Tofua Island where Bligh and his loyalists landed.

20 October – Sydney, Australia

23 October - Norfolk Island

26 October - Nuku'alofa - Tonga

27 October - Vava'u – Tonga

28 October – Bounty Cruise

29 October - Dravuni – Fiji

30 October - Lautoka - Fiji

1 November - Noumea - New Caledonia

4 November - Sydney - Australia

The conditions at the ship on Monday was good and the passengers were given the permission to disembark at Cascade Pier. I heard unofficial number ashore was around 2500 passengers, but have not had the numbers confirmed. It was a nice sunny day, which was lovely for many who walked around Kingston enjoying the World Heritage Convict Area, known as KAVHA, (Kingston Arthur’s Vale Historic Area). Others explored along the wonderful lagoon and walks along the shoreline or snorkeled in Emily Bay. The shops and cafes were very busy in town, as visitors were bused into Burnt Pine. Local tourist industries once again had a busy day welcoming and sharing our local hospitality.

Later in the day the passengers prepared to return to the cruise ship on the transfer vessels. Thank you to all the cruise ship organisers, tour company staff and managers and everyone who managed the boats down at Cascade.

I have read that the Pacific Adventure started sailing in 2001. The former name was Golden Princess. The Pacific Adventure is registered in London, UK. The maiden voyage was on May 16, 2001, as Golden Princess, and in 2022 it was transitioned to Pacific Adventure with a multi-million-dollar refurbishment that included the addition of 5 cabins and a new adults-only lounge and recreation park. The Pacific Adventure has 1316 cabins. 55 percent of the staterooms on board have balconies. You can expect between 2632 to 3158 passengers on a typical sailing. The Pacific Adventure has 1100 crew members on board. There are 3 passengers for every crew member on board. There are 16 decks on this ship. The highest deck number is 17. The number of decks with passenger cabins is 9.

The last cruise ship to visit was 14 September 2023, P&O Pacific Explorer with approximately 2000 passengers on board and disembarking at Kingston Pier.

The next scheduled cruise ship is on 1 November 2023, the P&O Pacific Explorer will return for their sixth P&O Cruise ship visit for the year.

This web page has information and updates of the current position of the vessel.

Pacific Adventure Itinerary, Current Position, Ship Review | CruiseMapper

Additional information checkout these sites.

15 Night Mutiny On The Bounty Cruise on the Pacific Adventure - PA23-V348 | Cruises.com.au

Pacific Adventure Deck Plans, Layouts, Pictures, Videos (cruisedeckplans.com)

Later in the day, I drove to Cascade Pier, and I took a few images as the passengers were ferried out to the P&O Pacific Adventure. It was wonderful to see the passengers ashore during the day, I am sure they were all excited to have had an opportunity to visit our beautiful Norfolk Island. As the sunset, at the end of the day, the ship departed, and we wish the passengers safe travels on the Pacific Adventure P&O Cruise, I am sure they will have a great holiday as they cruise the South Pacific. We hope to see you again on your next visit to our friendly Norfolk Island shores.

Thank you to all the cruise ship organisers, tour company staff and managers and everyone who manage the cruise ship visits, the coordinating and teamwork is great.

Betty Matthews

27 October 2023