Sun Princess returns to Australian island after bushfire emergency

On Saturday 18 January 2020, Princess Cruises’ Sun Princess became the first cruise ship to return to Kangaroo Island, South Australia, one of the areas most severely impacted by the recent bushfire disaster.

During the height of the bushfire emergency, an earlier cruise to Kangaroo Island had been diverted to Port Lincoln

Sun Princess is currently on a 13-night cruise from its current home port of Fremantle.

Guests on Sun Princess took advantage of a range of tours by local operators while others visited market stalls established by residents on the nearby Penneshaw Oval.

Several guests have made donations to bushfire relief, with https://www.bolsovercruiseclub.com/cruise-lines/princess-cruises itself also directing revenue it would normally receive from the day’s shore excursions to the appeal. Princess Cruises is part of Carnival Australia, which has pledged over £1m to various bushfire relief efforts in Australia.

Sun Princess’ captain, Diego Perra, said:

Our guests are aware this isn’t a normal visit to Kangaroo Island and that their presence helps show respect and solidarity to the local community. We have encouraged our guests to support the tourism operators who have worked so hard to ensure there is a wide selection of experiences from which to choose. All of us on Sun Princess are so proud to know that we are helping send a message that Kangaroo Island’s recovery has begun.

South Australia premier, Steven Marshall, also went to say:

Having the Sun Princess dock, with 2000 passengers, is going to inject a substantial economic benefit to the community and also send a strong signal that we are on the road to recovery.

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