#come back new – Cruise Ship Profiles

Princess Cruises celebrates construction milestone for Enchanted Princess

Princess Cruises has celebrated a significant construction milestone with the float out of the 3,660-guest Enchanted Princess from its building dock at Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy.

enchanted-princess-float-out-cropped_orig — Enchanted Princess in Fincantieri shipyard Image: Princess Cruises

A ceremony marked the occasion when the ship officially met the sea for the first time.

The float out of a ship is Italian shipyard custom and celebrated by a ‘Madrina’ blessing the vessel and wishing it a safe onward journey, as well as signalling the flow of water into the ship’s building dock.

Serving as the Madrina was Doris Ho, president and CEO of the Magsaysay group based in the Philippines – one of the largest human resource companies in the Asia Pacific region. Ms. Ho has been head of a long-standing partnership with Princess Cruises to recruit, train and develop crew members who work onboard the line’s fleet of ships.

The ship will officially launch in Southampton in June 2020.

Tony Roberts, Princess Cruises’ vice president UK and Europe, said: “We’re delighted to see another significant stage of Enchanted Princess’ construction successfully completed. The countdown to her launch in Southampton next year continues and we’re eagerly anticipating the final development of this stunning ship over the next few months.”

The 143,700-tonne Enchanted Princess will include the signature features of sister ships Royal Princess, Regal Princess, Majestic Princess and Sky Princess, as well as offering new innovations that represent an evolution of the current ships’ designs, including:

· Two ‘Sky Suites’, which have the largest balconies at sea and will be centrally located on the top decks. Measuring 1,012 square feet (starboard side Sky Suite) and 947 square feet (port side Sky Suite) the balconies will provide a private vantage of the top deck Movies Under the Stars cinema screen, offer 270-degree panorama views and sleep up to five guests. They will feature two bedrooms, two bathrooms and a dining area with skylight as well as a host of exclusive amenities

· First-of-its-kind digitally enhanced ‘Phantom Bridge’ experience, combining digital and physical elements for the ultimate escape room at sea

· New entertainment such as the jazz lounge ‘Take Five’, a redesigned Vista Lounge, an enhanced Princess Theatre and the recently announced production show ‘Rock Opera’

· More than 25 dining venues and bars including the World Fresh Marketplace and speciality restaurants Bistro Sur La Mer (French bistro), Crown Grill Steakhouse and Sabatini’s Italian Trattoria

· A redesigned Sanctuary area, the spa-inspired top deck retreat reserved for adults. The Sanctuary will feature an enhanced, contemporary design including twice as many private cabanas as its sister ships, as well as new lounge furniture and the option for guests to indulge in a spa treatment

· The Enclave at the Lotus Spa, which will include the largest thermal suite at sea, including hydrotherapy pool, heated stone beds, Turkish bath and dry, steam and aromatherapy chambers.

· Princess MedallionClass experience, featuring the complimentary OceanMedallion wearable device, which is the same size as a 10p piece, delivers an entirely new level of service and creates a holiday that is more simple, effortless and personalised with:
–   Expedited arrival – Guests who arrive at the terminal with travel documents (i.e. passports) uploaded to their profile enjoy a streamlined and expedited check-in process that gets their holiday started even sooner
–   Touchless stateroom entry – No need to touch, swipe or insert cards or devices into the door handle to unlock the stateroom. As a guest approaches their stateroom the door automatically unlocks
–   On-demand services – Using smart devices, guests have the ability to order drinks, food and retail items such as suntan lotion and have them delivered directly anywhere onboard, including to their stateroom
–   Interactive game play – Available on portals throughout the ship, PlayOcean allows guests to take part in digital scavenger hunts, interactive games and create their own avatars, as well as turning their smart device into a game controller for interactive gaming on the Movies Under The Stars top-deck screen
–   Family and friends locator – Accessible on portals throughout the ships and via guests’ smart devices, OceanCompass leverages the OceanMedallion to easily locate and chat with friends and family onboard. OceanCompass guides guests throughout their journey, providing directional information so they can seamlessly navigate to their next point of interest
–   Interactive voyage timeline – Available on ship portals and via smart devices, JourneyView is an interactive timeline that lets guests scroll through all of the events available on board during their voyage and bookmark activities they’re interested in to their own personalised itinerary. Voyage itineraries are available as many as 60 days in advance, allowing guests to start planning before they leave home

Princess Cruises is offering a 7-day Mediterranean and Aegean voyage on Enchanted Princess, departing September 12, 2020. Sailing from Rome (Civitavecchia) to Athens and calling at Naples, Kotor, Corfu, Chania and Mykonos. Prices from £1,009 per person.

Enchanted Madrina.jpg — Rai Caluori EVP guest experience and product development, Doris Ho and Tony Roberts Image Princess Cruises

About Princess Cruises:
One of the best-known names in cruising, Princess Cruises is a global premium cruise line and tour company operating a fleet of 17 modern cruise ships, carrying two million guests each year on 170 itineraries to more than 380 destinations around the globe, including the Caribbean, Alaska, Panama Canal, Mexican Riviera, Europe, South America, Australia/New Zealand, the South Pacific, Hawaii, Asia, Canada/New England and World Cruises. Itineraries range in length from three to 111 days.

In 2017 Princess Cruises, with parent company Carnival Corporation, introduced MedallionClass cruises enabled by the Ocean Medallion – the cruises industry’s most advanced wearable device, provided free to each guest sailing on a MedallionClass ship. The award-winning innovation offers the fastest way to a hassle-free, personalised cruise, giving guests more opportunity to enjoy their time onboard. Ocean Medallion will be activated on five ships by the end of 2019. An activation plan will continue across the global fleet in 2020 and beyond.

Three new Royal-class ships are currently on order with the next new ship, Sky Princess, under construction scheduled for delivery in October 2019. Princess recently announced that two new (LNG) ships which will be the largest ships in the Princess fleet, accommodating approximately 4,300 guests with expected delivery in 2023 and 2025. Princess now has five ships arriving over the next six years between 2019 & 2025. The company is part of Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE:CUK).

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Princess Cruises unveils 2021 Canada & New England cruises

Princess Cruises has announced its Canada & New England voyages departing throughout summer and autumn 2021.

The 2021 programme, which goes on sale from September 18, 2019, offers holidaymakers a choice of 17 cruises, visiting 18 destinations on seven itineraries. Princess will have three ships in the region, with voyages ranging in length from seven to 24 days.

Sky Princess 2 — Image: Princess Cruises

The 3,660-guest Sky Princess and 3,140-guest Caribbean Princess will sail from August to October on a series of departures from New York, Quebec and Fort Lauderdale. And as previously announced by the line, September will see the 2,600-guest Grand Princess sail roundtrip from Southampton on a 24-night voyage, calling at Boston, Bar Harbour, Halifax, Sydney (Nova Scotia), Quebec (overnight call), Saguenay, Charlottetown and St. Johns (Newfoundland).

The programme will see the line’s maiden call into Sept-Îles, Quebec, and afford guests more time to explore ashore with a series of late night departures in Boston and Charleston, as well as overnight calls in Quebec on select sailings. There is also the opportunity to visit Greenland, the world’s largest island.

Guests can take advantage of the variety of cruisetours available which encompass the region’s must-see attractions such as Niagara Falls, the Rideau Canal UNESCO World Heritage site in Ottawa, Independence Hall in Philadelphia and Washington DC.

All three ships will feature the multi award-winning OceanMedallion, which has been designed to deliver an entirely new level of service and create a holiday that is more simple, effortless and personalised with:

·   Expedited arrival – Guests who arrive at the terminal with travel documents (i.e. passports) uploaded to their profile enjoy a streamlined and expedited check-in process that gets their holiday started even sooner
·   Touchless stateroom entry – No need to touch, swipe or insert cards or devices into the door handle to unlock the stateroom. As a guest approaches their stateroom the door automatically unlocks
·   On-demand services – Using smart devices, guests have the ability to order drinks, food and retail items such as suntan lotion and have them delivered directly anywhere onboard, including to their stateroom
·   Interactive game play – Available on portals throughout the ship, PlayOcean allows guests to take part in digital scavenger hunts, interactive games and create their own avatars, as well as turning their smart device into a game controller for interactive gaming on the Movies Under The Stars top-deck screen
·   Family and friends locator – Accessible on portals throughout the ships and via guests’ smart devices, OceanCompass leverages the OceanMedallion to easily locate and chat with friends and family onboard. OceanCompass guides guests throughout their journey, providing directional information so they can seamlessly navigate to their next point of interest
·   Interactive voyage timeline – Available on ship portals and via guests’ smart devices, JourneyView is an interactive timeline that lets guests scroll through all of the events available onboard during their voyage and bookmark activities they’re interested in to their own personalised itinerary. Voyage itineraries are available as many as 60 days in advance, allowing guests to start planning before they leave home

Tony Roberts, Princess Cruises’ vice president UK and Europe, said: “With its vibrantly-coloured Autumn foliage, and the chance to visit stunning maritime provinces and quaint seaside towns such as Newport and Bar Harbour, the region continues to be a hit with new and past guests alike.

“As well as a variety of fly-cruise options, for guests wishing to experience everything the east coast of North America has to offer and spend plenty of time relaxing and enjoying the wealth of activities onboard, we are delighted to once again offer them the opportunity to sail across the Atlantic with us, from Southampton.”

Princess cruises is offering 24-day Canada & New England voyage, departing September 18, 2021 on Grand Princess. Sailing roundtrip from Southampton, calling at Boston, Bar Harbour, Halifax, Sydney (Nova Scotia), Quebec (overnight call), Saguenay, Charlottetown and St. Johns (Newfoundland). Prices from £2,399 per person. Special offer currently available with prices from £3,499 per person for a free upgrade from an oceanview stateroom to a balcony.

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Sky Princess completes sea trials

Princess Cruises has accomplished another major milestone in preparation for the launch of its newest ship, Sky Princess, by completing the vessel’s sea trials.

Sky Princess 2.jpg — Image: Princess Cruises

The 3,660-guest cruise ship set out to sea from a construction dock at Fincantieri Shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy and was put through its paces with a series of manoeuvres to test the propulsion, steering and navigational equipment.

After a successful six days of trials, Sky Princess is now back in the shipyard where she will undergo further exterior and interior finishing in preparation for her 7-day Mediterranean and Adriatic maiden voyage on October 20, 2019.

The ship will sail a short season in the Mediterranean before heading to the Caribbean.

Sky Princess will be an evolution of sister ships Royal Princess, Regal Princess and Majestic Princess. Her enhancements will also feature on Enchanted Princess, which launches in Southampton in June 2020. They include:

· New entertainment such as the jazz lounge ‘Take Five’, a redesigned Vista Lounge, an enhanced Princess Theatre and the recently announced production show ‘Rock Opera’

· More than 25 dining venues and bars including the World Fresh Marketplace and speciality restaurants Bistro Sur La Mer (French bistro), Crown Grill Steakhouse and Sabatini’s Italian Trattoria

· Princess MedallionClass experience, featuring the complimentary OceanMedallion wearable device, which is the same size as a 10p piece, delivers an entirely new level of service and creates a holiday that is more simple, effortless and personalised with:
–   Expedited arrival – Guests who arrive at the terminal with travel documents (i.e. passports) uploaded to their profile enjoy a streamlined and expedited check-in process that gets their holiday started even sooner
–   Touchless stateroom entry – No need to touch, swipe or insert cards or devices into the door handle to unlock the stateroom. As a guest approaches their stateroom the door automatically unlocks
–   On-demand services – Using smart devices, guests have the ability to order drinks, food and retail items such as suntan lotion and have them delivered directly anywhere onboard, including to their stateroom
–   Interactive game play – Available on portals throughout the ship, PlayOcean allows guests to take part in digital scavenger hunts, interactive games and create their own avatars, as well as turning their smart device into a game controller for interactive gaming on the Movies Under The Stars top-deck screen
–   Family and friends locator – Accessible on portals throughout the ships and via guests’ smart devices, OceanCompass leverages the OceanMedallion to easily locate and chat with friends and family onboard. OceanCompass guides guests throughout their journey, providing directional information so they can seamlessly navigate to their next point of interest
–   Interactive voyage timeline – Available on ship portals and via guests’ smart devices, JourneyView is an interactive timeline that lets guests scroll through all of the events available on board during their voyage and bookmark activities they’re interested in to their own personalised itinerary. Voyage itineraries are available as many as 60 days in advance, allowing guests to start planning before they leave home

Sky Princess 1 — Image: Princess Cruises

The Princess Cruises fleet will continue to expand with the launch of Enchanted Princess and three additional ships arriving in 2021, 2023 and 2025.

Princess Cruises is offering a 7-day Eastern Caribbean voyage on Sky Princess, departing February 22, 2020. Sailing roundtrip from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, ports of call are Princess Cays (Bahamas), St Thomas and St Maarten. Special offer currently available with prices from £999 per person for a mini-suite.

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Princess Cruises announces all-inclusive deal on 250 Caribbean sailings

Princess Cruises announces all-inclusive deal on 250 Caribbean sailings

Princess Cruises is offering holidaymakers an all-inclusive holiday package including drinks and up to $1500 on board spending money per stateroom when booking a Caribbean cruise. The deal is available from July 2 – 31, 2019 and applies to nearly 250 voyages on six of the line’s ships, departing December 1, 2019 – May 22, 2021.

Included in the offer are 58 sailings across 17 different itineraries on Sky Princess, the newest addition to the line’s fleet, which launches in October this year. The 3,660-guest ship will sail a variety of eastern, western and southern Caribbean itineraries from December 2019 – March 2021.

Guests one and two in a stateroom can take advantage of an all-inclusive drinks package including speciality coffee and tea, soft drinks, cocktails, wine, beer and premium spirits. Any additional stateroom guests will receive a package comprising coffee and tea, soft drinks, fruit juices, hot chocolate, smoothies and mocktails.

The 3,660-guest Enchanted Princess, which launches in Southampton next year, 3,560-guest Regal Princess and 3,140-guest Caribbean Princess are all offering eastern and western Caribbean sailings, while the 2,200-guest ship Island Princess will depart on a circle Caribbean itinerary.

A variety of itineraries are also available on the 3,080-guest Crown Princess including southern Caribbean, circle Caribbean, Caribbean explorer and Panama Canal with Costa Rica and Caribbean.

The cruises range in length from four to 21 days, with late night calls in St. Thomas, St. Maarten, Cozumel, Aruba and Curacao. Voyages sail roundtrip from Fort Lauderdale.

OceanMedallion-faq2-480x315 — Image: Princess Cruises

All ships will feature the multi award-winning Ocean Medallion technology.

Tony Roberts, vice president Princess Cruises UK & Europe, said: “With its white sands, year-round sunshine and crystal clear waters the Caribbean remains a hot spot for returning and new-to-cruise guests. By taking advantage of this offer and allowing Princess to cover the drinks bill, our guests can raise a glass to this stunning part of the world as our ships cross its islands.”

Princess Cruises is offering a 7-day Eastern Caribbean voyage, sailing roundtrip from Fort Lauderdale on Sky Princess. Departing January 25, 2020, ports of call include Princess Cays (Bahamas), St. Thomas and St. Maarten. Prices from £899 per person, with up to $250 onboard spending money per person.

For more information or to book visit www.princess.com , speak to your local travel agent or call 0344 338 8663.

Notes

Fare price based on two guests sharing an inside stateroom.

The all-Inclusive offer includes drinks package*, accommodation, all main meals and entertainment.

* Guests one and two sharing a stateroom will receive the Premier Beverage Package, guests three and four in the same stateroom, as well as all guests under the age of 21, will receive the Premier Coffee & Soda Package.

Speciality dining, WiFi, gratuities, shore excursions and spa purchases are not included as part of the offer.

The amount of onboard spending money will vary based on voyage length and stateroom type.

About Princess Cruises
One of the best-known names in cruising, Princess Cruises is a global premium cruise line and tour company operating a fleet of 17 modern cruise ships, carrying two million guests each year on 170 itineraries to more than 380 destinations around the globe, including the Caribbean, Alaska, Panama Canal, Mexican Riviera, Europe, South America, Australia/New Zealand, the South Pacific, Hawaii, Asia, Canada/New England and World Cruises. Itineraries range in length from three to 111 days.

Princess Cruises continues its multi-year, “Come Back New Promise” – a £330 million-pound product innovation and cruise ship renovation campaign that will continue to enhance the line’s onboard guest experience. These product innovations include partnerships with award-winning Chef Curtis Stone; shows created in partnership with Broadway-legend Stephen Schwartz; immersive activities for the whole family from Discovery and Animal Planet from exclusive shore excursions to onboard activities; the ultimate sleep at sea with the award-winning Princess Luxury Bed and more.

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Countdown to Enchanted Princess

Enchanted Princess.jpg

Princess Cruises begins one-year countdown to Enchanted Princess

Princess Cruises has commenced the one-year countdown to the launch of the 3,660-guest Enchanted Princess in Southampton on June 30, 2020.

Construction of the 143,700-ton ship is currently under way in the Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy, where it will take a total of three million construction hours to build. On completion, the vessel will sail from Southampton for an inaugural season in the Mediterranean before heading to the Caribbean in autumn 2020.

Its maiden voyage will be a 10-night sailing to Rome, calling at Bilbao, Lisbon, Gibraltar, Barcelona, Toulon/Provence (La Seyne) and Florence/Pisa (Livorno), departing on July 1, 2020.

Enchanted Princess is the sister ship to Royal Princess, Regal Princess, Majestic Princess and Sky Princess, which joins the fleet in October 2019. Royal Princess was the most recent vessel from the line’s fleet to be named in Southampton, in 2013, by Her Royal Highness, The Duchess of Cambridge.

Enchanted Princess will be an evolution of her sister ships with enhancements, which are also set to feature on Sky Princess, including:

· On-demand services – Food, beverage, retail order and hospitality services delivered to your location: Using smart devices, guests have the ability to order drinks, food and retail items like suntan lotion and have them delivered directly anywhere onboard, including to their stateroom.

· Family and friends locator – Finding travel companions and directional ship information: Accessible on portals throughout the ships and via guests’ smart devices, OceanCompass leverages the OceanMedallion to easily locate and chat with friends and family onboard. OceanCompass guides guests throughout their journey, providing directional information so they can seamlessly navigate to their next point of interest.

· New entertainment such as jazz lounge Take Five, a redesigned Vista Lounge and an enhanced Princess Theatre

· More than 25 dining venues and bars including the World Fresh Marketplace and speciality restaurants La Mer (French bistro), Crown Grill Steakhouse and Sabatini’s Italian Trattoria

Tony Roberts, Princess Cruises vice president UK & Europe, said: “With just one year to go until the launch of Enchanted Princess in Southampton this is an exciting time for Princess Cruises as we prepare to add another ship to our fleet. Enchanted Princess will showcase our continued commitment to offering premium services and features for our guests, as well as maintaining the signature Princess experience that our guests have come to know and love.”

Enchanted Princess interesting facts:

·   With a length of 1083 feet, Enchanted Princess is longer than the height of The Shard, the tallest UK building
·   At 217 feet tall, Enchanted Princess is around the height of 15 double-decker buses stacked on top of one another
·   There will be 2,500 miles of electrical cabling in Enchanted Princess, equivalent to the distance between London and Cairo
·   100,000 gallons of paint will be used in the construction of Enchanted Princess, more than 10 times the amount required annually to paint the Golden Gate Bridge
·   Enchanted Princess will feature 200 tons of marble, 30 times the amount used in Michelangelo’s statue of David
·   Enchanted Princess’ anchor is 14 tons, twice the weight of an elephant
·   Enchanted Princess will have a top speed of 22 knots (25 mph) and 15,000KW of transverse (sideways) thruster power. Princess Cruises’ original Love Boat, Pacific Princess, had a forward propulsion power of about 13,500KW, meaning Enchanted Princess can go faster sideways than the original Pacific Princess could travel forward

The company is part of Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE:CUK).

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