Carnival Australia senior executive of more than a decade, Ryan Taibel, has confirmed he will be departing the company later this year amid a number of changes at the cruise juggernaut.

In anticipation of a restart of domestic cruising in Australia, hundreds of travel agents had their first chance to inspect the new Brisbane International Cruise Terminal at a Carnival Australia-hosted business update.

Carnival Australia President Sture Myrmell has jumped to the defence of cruise ships in Australia after an “intense focus” on the sector as the country continues to “grapple with the impact of COVID-19 and fights to slow the spread of illness”.

Marshall Lancaster has been appointed as Chief Information Officer for the professional services division supporting Princess Cruises, Holland America Line, Seabourn, P&O Cruises Australia and Carnival Australia. In the role, Marshall will oversee the entire information technology portfolio for the four cruise brands.

The amended commercial agreement between Port of Brisbane Pty Ltd (PBPL) and Australia’sCarnival Australia, follows the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s (ACCC) conditional approval of the project last month.