In a surprise move, Cunard’s newest ship Queen Anne is leaving the fleet in 2029 and moving across to sister brand P&O Cruises.
At the same time, Arcadia will leave P&O Cruises after more than 20 years and transfer to Holland America Line.
I definitely didn’t see this one coming. Having sailed on Queen Anne last year, I thought she was a great modern take on the brand while still retaining Cunard’s unmistakable style and sense of occasion.
So while I’ll be sorry to see her leave Cunard so soon, I’m also quite intrigued to see what P&O Cruises does with her.
Queen Anne’s move to P&O Cruises
Queen Anne isn’t going anywhere just yet. She will continue sailing with Cunard for the next few years, including taking part in the Four Queens celebration in Liverpool in May 2028.
Her final World Voyage will follow in winter 2028/29, before she undergoes an extensive refurbishment and joins P&O Cruises in May 2029.
She’ll also get a new name, although P&O Cruises hasn’t revealed what that will be yet. We don’t know exactly what will change onboard either, with P&O describing the work as an extensive “reimagining”.
Hopefully they won’t reimagine her too much!
When I sailed on Queen Anne in November 2025, one of the things that stood out was how contemporary she felt. There are some lovely public spaces onboard and I really liked the Artisans’ Foodhall. It’s a great space with plenty of choice and a much nicer experience than the buffet carnage I experienced on Arvia recently!
It will be interesting to see how much of the existing ship P&O Cruises keeps and what changes they make to give her more of a P&O identity.
Queen Anne is also smaller than Iona and Arvia, carrying around 3,000 passengers compared with more than 5,000 on P&O Cruises’ two largest ships. That means she could offer something a little different while still having many of the modern features passengers enjoy on the newer ships.
What will happen to Cunard?
Once Queen Anne leaves, Cunard will return to a three-ship fleet of Queen Mary 2, Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth, all ships with a more traditional Cunard feel.
There is still investment planned for the existing fleet though, with Queen Mary 2 due to receive a major upgrade in 2027.
And if you fancy sailing on Queen Anne while she’s still a Cunard Queen, there’s plenty of time. All her currently published cruises will operate as planned, including her final World Voyage in early 2029.
Arcadia is leaving P&O Cruises
The other big change is the departure of Arcadia, which has been sailing with P&O Cruises since 2005.
She will complete a special farewell season, ending on 21 August 2029, before transferring to Holland America Line later that year.
We don’t yet know what Arcadia’s farewell season will look like, but we may not have too long to wait. P&O Cruises’ winter 2028/29 collection goes on sale from 21 October 2026, so we could find out more then.
I’ve never sailed on Arcadia, but I’m particularly interested to see what Holland America does with her. I cruised with the line earlier this year and really enjoyed the experience.
She seems a natural fit for the Holland America fleet. Arcadia is a Vista-class ship and will join fellow Vista-class ships Oosterdam, Zuiderdam, Westerdam and Noordam.
Before entering service with Holland America, she’ll undergo a major transformation as part of the Holland America Evolution fleet renewal programme.
The last word
It’s certainly a big shake-up and there are still plenty of questions to be answered. How much will the ships change, what will Queen Anne be called and where will they sail?
Having really liked Queen Anne as a Cunard ship, and also being a fan of Iona and Arvia, I’m curious to see what she will be like once she joins P&O Cruises.
Arcadia’s move is an interesting one too. I’ve never sailed on her, but my first Holland America cruise earlier this year left me keen to try more of the line. Perhaps I’ll finally get the chance once she joins the fleet.
For now, we’ll just have to wait and see what P&O Cruises and Holland America have planned for them.
What do you think of this surprising news? Let me know in the comments below.