As Cyclone Alfred bears down on Queensland, passengers aboard a P&O Cruises Australia ship have learned their 4-night voyage has been extended.
The 108,865-gross-ton Pacific Encounter, which departed from Brisbane, Australia, on March 4, 2025, is currently calling in Airlie Beach, Australia, on March 6, and was expected back to its home port on March 8.
Instead, a category 2 tropical cyclone has forced the closure of the Port of Brisbane.
“The shipping channel remains closed for inbound vessels, under the direction from Maritime Safety Queenland’s (MSQ) Regional Harbour Master,” said the port.
The storm, with sustained winds of up to 102 miles per hour, is heading directly for Queensland’s capital city, situated on the Sunshine Coast.
As a result, a warning has been issued by the Australian Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) for Double Island Point in Queensland to Grafton in New South Wales. This includes Brisbane, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Byron Bay, and Ballina, but not Grafton.
The bureau says the storm could reach landfall early on Saturday, March 8, just when Pacific Encounter was scheduled to return with up to 2,600 passengers.
Because the ship cannot return home, guests scheduled to depart on March 8’s subsequent 7-night “Pacific Island Hopper” voyage received word from the cruise line that “it will therefore no longer be possible to visit the Pacific Islands.”
“We are continuing to monitor Cyclone Alfred and are in close contact with the Port of Brisbane in preparation for your Pacific Encounter cruise,” said P&O Cruises in a letter to passengers.
“The cyclone has slowed and is now expected to make landfall some time on Saturday morning and the port will be closed, preventing us from sailing as scheduled,” the letter continued.
P&O Cruises told its guests it will continue to provide more updates on March 8.
Cyclone Disrupts Port of Brisbane Operations
For would-be guests of Pacific Encounter’s possibly cancelled March 8 voyage, Cyclone Alfred’s presence means missing out on visits to Noumea and Lifou, New Caledonia, and Champagne Bay, Espiritu Santo.
While the island visits may not be in the cards, the cruise ship could adjust its sailing schedule and provide guests with another option, albeit it a shorter voyage than expected.
The cruise line is waiting to see what damage Cyclone Alfred may have on ports, depending on its intensity.
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The BOM is currently warning of heavy rainfall, flash floods, dangerous and abnormally high storm tides, and damaging and destructive wind gusts, which is why the port has closed. Should Alfred intensify, winds can reach speeds of more than 157 miles per hour.
Tropical Cyclone Alfred formed off the coast of Queensland on February 23, 2025, and, although it stalled, continues to cause disruptions to cruises in the region.
Carnival Cruise Line’s 2,260-passenger Carnival Luminosa was also supposed to return home to Brisbane on March 8.
Instead, guests have been informed not to expect to arrive back at port until March 9, possibly March 10, also affecting the subsequent voyage.
The weather has also stopped Royal Caribbean’s Quantum of the Seas from returning to Brisbane until March 10, three days after it was supposed to arrive.
The change forced the cruise line to cancel its following 3-day mini cruise.
Also affected by the port’s closure are Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Sun and Cunard’s Queen Anne, which just arrived in Australia in late February.
