Three sailors have described their lucky rescue by a P&O cruise ship near New Caledonia after they were forced to abandon their sinking boat.

Key points: The men say a large ship's rope had wrapped around both propellers of their boat and caused it to start filling with water

The men say a large ship's rope had wrapped around both propellers of their boat and caused it to start filling with water The trio were only floating in the life raft for about an hour when the Pacific Dawn cruise ship found them

The trio were only floating in the life raft for about an hour when the Pacific Dawn cruise ship found them They have all had 40 years' boating experience and say the ordeal has not stopped them wanting to get back out on the water

Cousins Chris and Kevin Doran from Newcastle, and Ben Johnson from Vanuatu, arrived in Brisbane on Saturday morning after being picked up by the Pacific Dawn on Thursday.

Chris Doran said his motor cruiser boat, Liberty, came to an abrupt stop around 5:30am during their trip from Vanuatu to Queensland's Gold Coast.

"Initially we thought we might have hit a reef, but looking at the navigation map, that wasn't the case," Chris Doran said.

They then discovered a large ship's rope had wrapped around both propellers and caused the boat to start filling with water.

"How do you hit a piece of rope in the middle of the ocean? Bad luck," Chris Doran said.

After about two hours of pumping water, the decision was made to get into the life raft and abandon the boat.

They activated their emergency beacon and made a call for help.

The Pacific Dawn received a call from marine authorities in Noumea, when it was about 55 nautical miles away from the men.

The three men were saved by the cruise ship near New Caledonia. ( Facebook: P&O cruises Australia )

'It's a no-brainer'

Pacific Dawn Captain Alan Dockeray contacted the sailors on a satellite phone telling them he was on his way to pick them up.

"It's a no-brainer isn't it? You've got to go help them," Captain Dockeray said.

"Fortunately they were on the route, so I didn't have to turn back or anything like that.

"They're very nice unexpected guests — they didn't even look the part of shipwrecked sailors when they came onboard."

Chris and Kevin Doran and Ben Johnson arrived in Brisbane on Saturday morning. ( Twitter: @CarnivalAusNews )

Sailor Ben Johnson described the moment of seeing the huge ship on the horizon.

"What a sight — that's when it all hit, how are we going to get on and then we started thinking how is this going to go down?" Mr Johnson said.

"Everyone is telling us to buy lotto tickets."

A tender boat was lowered from the cruise ship and brought them aboard.

"It could've been a lot worse, especially if it happened in the middle of the night and the ship was further away," Chris Doran said.

The men rescued by the Pacific Dawn cruise ship climb on board on Thursday. ( Facebook: P&O cruises Australia )

One of the men tried to call his wife three times but she had not answered, so Mr Johnson called his wife in Vanuatu who helped coordinate the rescue effort.

Kevin Doran said at one stage, when he was manning the hand pump below the deck, he had a moment of fear.

He told his fellow crew members, "Don't leave me here!"

The three men said their biggest fear once on the life raft was drifting onto a reef, but they were only floating in the raft for about three hours when the cruise ship found them.

"I think we were only six miles from a reef, which would've cut the raft up — plus us — and would've been the end," Chris Doran said.

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'It was a beautiful boat'

The three men on board their life raft, with their sinking boat in the distance. ( Facebook: P&O Cruises Australia )

Once onboard the Pacific Dawn, the men were taken for a medical and provided with a cabin and food.

Kevin Doran went straight to the shop to buy a shirt and pants.

He said the rescue came down to being well-prepared and very lucky.

"The safety equipment all worked correctly, we knew where it was, we knew what to do," Kevin Doran said.

The trio thanked the captain and staff of the Pacific Dawn.

Chris Doran said he had his boat Liberty for six years and it was very sad to see it go.

"A lot of memories with the family — it was a beautiful boat," Chris Doran said.

The men have all had 40 years' boating experience and said the ordeal has not stopped them wanting to get back out on the water.