Cruises in Australia
Australian cruises are popular leisure pursuits for many Australians. There are a lot of cruises that offer picturesque landscapes and spectacular views to travelers such as the Great Barrier Reef, Sydney, Melbourne, and Tasmania. Australian cruises provide a great setting for travelers to experience the cultural and culinary adventures the country has to offer with the option of taking 12 or 14-night cruises.

Cruise ships are generally used for cruises for its spacious interiors, top of the line facilities and amenities, high standards of service, and the ability to hold hundreds to thousands of passengers on board.
The number of Australians who are taking a cruise holiday has increased over the years based on recent statistics. Despite the economic downturn the local cruise industry has experienced its strongest growth with Australian, New Zealand and South Pacific cruises attracting large numbers of travelers and guests.

Australian Cruise Industry News stated the following facts about the industry in Australia:

• Total passenger numbers rose up to 26% in recent years.
• The most popular cruise destinations include Australia, New Zealand and South Pacific with more than 59% of the market.
• Europe came in second and ranked as the 2nd most popular cruise destination representing 16% of the market.
• Asia came in as the 3rd most popular cruise destination for Australians attracting approximately 10% of the market.
• More Australians are cruising for a longer time with an estimated annual sea days rising by 45%.
• The number of Australian cruise passengers has grown more than 185% since it was first recorded in 2002.

There are a couple of popular cruise lines that operate in Australia: the Orion Expedition Cruises, which is a luxury expedition cruise line that was formed in 2004; and P&O Cruises Australia, which is owned by Carnival Corporation & PLC. The Norwegian Capricorn Line was one of the cruise lines available until it was merged into Star Cruises. There are other cruises in Australia that also travel to tourist destinations in nearby countries.

Things you need to know when going on a cruise

• Cruise ships of today are very stable so seasickness is now a rarity. However, there are remedies available to prevent this condition
• Most cruises are not all-inclusive. Cruise lines charge for everything that can be considered as extra such as bottled water and wine. However, the basic fare of cruise ships includes rooms and traditional cruise ship amenities such as swimming pool and entertainment.
• Cruises nowadays have open seating for dinner, which allows the traveler to dine as he or she pleases whenever he or she wants it. There are fewer cruise ships these days that have assigned times and tables.
• Cruise ships these days are big and spacious so there should be no alarm for people who think that these ships are crowded. Furthermore, cruise ships are not always packed with old people or the younger party people. Cruise ships are normally equipped for a variety of travelers and have facilities for all of them.