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Australia is the largest market outside of North America (US and Canada) for Windstar Cruises, MD Global Commercial Helen Beck told Seatrade Cruise News.
Beck, who was speaking at CLIA Australasia's Cruise360 in Sydney this week, said the number of Australian visitors is expected to grow even more with the introduction of Air Tahiti Nui's direct Sydney-Papeete service in December.
She said the boutique small ship line, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary of sailing in Tahiti, will have two ships there from March next year when the classic four-masted sailing yacht Wind Star joins Star Breeze which is permanently home-ported in Tahiti.
Wind Star will operate seven-night round cruises from Papeete, while Star Breeze continues her deployment in French Polynesia, expanding her itineraries to include destinations like the Tuamotu, Marquesas and Society Islands.
Beck said Windstar will take delivery of its eighth ship, Star Explorer, in December.
The former World Explorer, which was built for Mystic Cruises in 2019 and sailed for Nicko Cruises, Quark Expeditions and French operator Rivages du Monde before being acquired by Windstar, is currently undergoing a major transformation at the WestSea Viana shipyard in Portugal.
The 224-passenger all-suite yacht will sail on a nine-night maiden voyage from Barcelona on December 28 and will sail in the Mediterranean and Europe year-round, visiting smaller places where big ships cannot go.
She will be christened on London's River Thames on May 31, 2027.
Source: sea-trade cruise
