New Home (for a short while), New Entertainment

Although we didn't cover it at the time (basically, because the ship just started doing what we already reported it was going to be doing), Royal Princess is now comfortably in its new seasonal West Coast home port of Los Angeles sailing Princess' signature itinerary to the Mexican Riviera.

Captain Stubing, Gopher, Julie, Doc and Isaac would be proud at how the hardware has evolved from Pacific Princess to this magnificent Medallion Class ship. They would also have a new feature which would be a source of different guest stars to board the Love Boat every week.

The complete story appeared in the April 4 edition of Cruise News Daily. 

Counting Down

Princess has started a countdown until Royal Princess arrives at Los Angeles, the first time the ship, or any of its class has been on the US West Coast. It's just 200 days until it arrives (from South America) and begins a spring series of Princess' signature seven-night Mexican Riviera cruises on March 23, 2019.

Details appeared in the September 4 edition of Cruise News Daily.

Other Things You'll Want to Know - October 25, 2016

CND subscribers also read about:

• Royal Caribbean choosing a "hometown hero" as godmother for Harmony of the Seas.
• Royal Princess arriving on US shores as the first Princess ship to be painted in the line's new livery. 

Details appeared in the October 25 edition of Cruise News Daily. 

Royal Princess in the line's new livery

Photo courtesy of Princess Cruises. All rights reserved. May not be copied or used without express permission. 

Like the Italian Version of Maaco for Ships

We noted earlier this week that when Royal Princess emerged from dry dock in Palermo, it was the first Princess ship to have its hull painted in the new Princess livery.

The time lapse video below shows how it was done.

Royal Princess Shows Off New Livery

Royal Princess was seen leaving the Fincantieri dry dock in Palermo on Friday, the first of the Princess ships to get the new livery. The iconic white hull is out, replaced by a large, blue, flowing Princess logo on the bow. Stunning.

Royal Princess was headed to Civitavecchia to begin her 14-day crossing on Saturday from there to Port Everglades, where she will be homeported for her winter Caribbean season.

This story appeared in the October 10 edition of Cruise News Daily.

Photos courtesy of Princess Cruises. All rights reserved. May not be copied o used without permission. 

Cruise News Daily Headlines for October 28, 2013

* Do you Like to Eat?
Quite a few years ago, when I was a travel agent, I remember suggesting a cruise to a client. She rejected it out of hand, saying, “I don’t want to go on anything like that. Everybody just sits around and eats.” I tried to assure her there was much more to the cruise than dining, and despite what she had heard, normal quantities of food were consumed by most people, but secretly I liked her perception better than reality.

Now thanks to Celebrity, I think my fantasy (and the woman’s nightmare) has been fulfilled.

Next summer, on their President’s Cruise, Celebrity will create a week’s worth of special memorable experiences in dining and entertainment, created specifically for this sailing, special enough that it would even tempt my former client.


* Other Things You’ll Want to Know
CND subscribers also read about Royal Princess' maiden arrival in Ft. Lauderdale (more) ,,, and what slump in Alaska?

The complete articles appeared in the e-mail edition of Cruise News Daily delivered to our subscribers.

Royal Princess Arrives in US for First Time

The newest ship in Princess Cruises' fleet - Royal Princess - arrived in the US for the first time this afternoon.

Gavin MacLeod was on hand to greet the new ship at Port Everglades in Ft. Lauderdale today. He is Princess Cruises' ambassador and is best known for his long-running part as Captain Stubing in classic TV series, "The Love Boat."

A court of of little girls was also on hand to welcome the ship, and MacLeod proclaimed them “royal princesses for the day.” (Does he have that power?)

Royal Princess has been sailing in the Mediterranean since June when it was officially named by Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cambridge. After a two night preview cruise from Ft. Lauderdale for invited guests, Royal Princess will enter regular service from the US with a five-night cruise on October 29. 

Throughout the winter season Royal Princess will sail a series of seven-day cruises from Ft. Lauderdale to the eastern Caribbean. 

Cruise News Daily Headlines for September 24, 2013

* Britannia to Rule the Waves
Last spring when Royal Princess’ propeller blades were damaged in the yard, replacements were borrowed from a P&O newbuild that could only be referred to as the P&O ship because it didn’t have a name. After a high-profile announcement in London today, the 141,000-ton sister to Royal Princess now has a name - Britannia.

P&O's Britannia which will enter service in the spring of 2015

* Proceed to Barcelona
There is good news for the passengers who are scheduled to board Royal Princess on Friday for a 12-night cruise to Venice. Princess says they will have completed repairs on the ship’s electrical system, and passengers should proceed to Venice, because the cruise will operate as scheduled.


* Other Things You’ll Want to Know
CND subscribers also read about protesters delaying ships at Venice ... and it being nice of her to drop in.


The complete articles appeared in the e-mail edition of Cruise News Daily delivered to our subscribers.

Cruise News Daily Headlines for September 23, 2013

* Royal Princess Ends Voyage Early
A power outage on Sunday aboard Royal Princess, which was just delivered in June, has ended up causing Princess to terminate the voyage early and begin working to get the ship fully repaired before the next voyage, which starts on Friday.

The outage occurred while the ship was sailing between Mykonos and Naples as part of a 12-night Mediterranean cruise from Venice to Barcelona which departed on September 15.


* Production of Oasis 3 Begins
STX France took the first concrete step in the actual building of the Oasis-class ship for Royal Caribbean when they cut the first steel for the ship today.

The event took place at the Saint-Nazaire (France) yard where the ship will be built.


The complete articles appeared in the e-mail edition of Cruise News Daily delivered to our subscribers.

Cruise News Daily Headlines for June 20, 2013

* Loss of Twinkies Means Cruise Line’s Gain
Entertainers in the shows aboard cruise ships rotate on and off the ships all the time. When they get to the ship, they’re expected to be ready to be in the shows right away. There’s no time for them to learn the songs or the dances once they’re aboard the ship. So where do they learn their parts if they don’t do it on the ship?

In Norwegian Cruise Line’s case, the answer is just outside Tampa, Florida.


* Other Things You’ll Want to Know
CND subscribers also read about the more "useful" side of the ship ... and duck, duck, goose!


The complete articles appeared in the e-mail edition of Cruise News Daily delivered to our subscribers.

Royal Princess Features: SeaView Bar

The SeaWalk aboard Princess Cruises' new Royal Princess seems to be getting a lot of attention, but we think it's sister feature, the SeaView Bar, on the other side of the ship is a lot more interesting - and useful.

The SeaView Bar aboard the new Royal Princess

The SeaView Bar, on the starboard side of the ship's pool deck, is shaped just like the SeaWalk, and you can still walk out 28 feet beyond the side of the ship and look down through the glass deck to the sea 128 feet below, but instead of the open hole in the middle, the SeaView Bar fills up hole.

Sit on the "outside" of the bar and you can look down through the windows to the sea below or out through the "picture windows" to the expansive horizon. Sit on the "inside" and you have a great view of the top deck, the giant Movies Under the Stars screen (30% larger and more brilliant than on other Princess ships) and the Dancing Fountains show.

But twice a day - at midday and sunset - the SeaView Bar is itself the site of an eye-popping show - Princess' flair bartenders' show where you will see the experts do their fanciest (but impractical) bartending.

Photo copyright Cruise News Daily, all rights reserved.

Cruise News Daily Headlines for June 14, 2013

* Dance, Fountains, Dance!
One of the unique new entertainment features aboard Royal Princess is the Dancing Fountains on the ship’s top deck.

This isn’t a fountain in the traditional sense that babbles constantly day and night and invites vandals to drop detergent into it. This is truly an entertainment feature aboard Royal Princess that is unique on cruise ships, and will perform for passengers several times during each cruise.


* Other Things You’ll Want to Know
CND readers also read about a new place to “land” in Hong Kong ... and the Banana Coast is moving forward.


The complete articles appeared in the e-mail edition of Cruise News Daily delivered to our subscribers.

Cruise News Daily Headlines for June 13, 2013

* A Special Day in the Life of Royal Princess
The christening of a cruise ship is always a special day, and there’s lots of excitement in the air, especially surrounding the godmother, but when royalty is involved, it adds an extra element of electricity and importance that everything goes off perfectly.

In this CND article we take readers with on us to today’s Royal Princess naming ceremony.


* Meanwhile on the Other Side of the Atlantic
While many eyes were focused on Princess’ celebration today in Southampton, another Carnival brand was enjoying their own Triumph. The refurbished and renewed Carnival Triumph was returning to service in Galveston.

The complete articles appeared in the e-mail edition of Cruise News Daily delivered to our subscribers.

Cruise News Daily Headlines for June 12, 2013

* Celebrity’s “Punishment” Continues
The suspension of Celebrity’s license to visit the national park in the Galapagos Islands continues. The line has canceled the June 16 sailing, the third such sailing to get axed.

* First Impressions
I’ve been aboard Royal Princess now for a bit more than 24 hours and my overwhelming impression is that I’ve been here before. As someone who has sailed aboard a lot of Princess ships, nothing seems all that different from other Princess ships.

That’s exactly the feeling Princess told me they were going for a couple of months ago when I toured the ship in the yard. They want regular Princess passengers to feel at home, and they can discover the new features as they encounter them, or have them incorporated so seamlessly that feel like they’ve always been part of the product. That they’ve done very, very well.

Updates from aboard Royal Princess appear on our blog at http://cnd-at-sea.blogspot.com




The complete articles appeared in the e-mail edition of Cruise News Daily delivered to our subscribers.

Royal Princess Arrives in Southampton

The weather was less than perfect for Royal Princess' maiden arrival at Southampton, but it began to clear as she entered the harbor, and the well-wishers on shore got their first glimpse of the new ship. Here's a quick peek for our readers of the glistening new ship, inside and out.

Photos and video courtesy of Princess Cruises.

Royal Princess on the Way

Royal Princess is currently sailing from the shipyard in Italy to Southampton where the inaugural activities will take place. It's scheduled to arrive on Friday morning (June 7, 2013).

Along the way the crew turned out on deck for the traditional inaugural crew photo. Do you see anyone you know?

Two New Experiences for Wine Enthusiasts aboard Royal Princess

Wine enthusiasts sailing aboard Royal Princess will have two new opportunities for premium experiences, the Winemaker Dinner, and the Super Tuscan Wine Tasting, as shown in the short video below. As we note in the full CND article, they are part of the evolving premium dining experiences that are being developed in the cruise industry.



The complete article appeared in the June 5, 2013, edition of Cruise News Daily.

Princess@Sea to Debut on Royal Princess

When Royal Princess debuts next week, so will a new service called Princess@Sea. The free app will work on iPhones, iPads, Androids and even Kindle Fire. Once connected to the ship's WiFi, the app will show an electronic version of that day's Princess Patter, your stateroom account, and other interactive ship information. The service will debut on Royal Princess, and then roll out to other ships in the fleet.

Fincantieri Delivers Royal Princess

Royal Princess became part of the Princess fleet today when Fincantieri delivered the 141,000-ton ship to Carnival Corp at the builder's Monfalcone yard.

With Princess and Fincantieri executives and Italian government officials looking on, the handover was signified by the lowering of the Fincantieri and Italian flags from the ship’s mast, to be replaced by the flags of Princess and Bermuda.

The brief video below shows the this morning's flag changing ceremony. 



Royal Princess will leave the yard on Friday for Southampton, where it will be named on June 13.

Photos of Royal Princess During Sea Trials

Royal Princess has completed sea trials and has returned to the Fincantieri yard at Monfalcone (Italy). The crew has arrived in Monfalcone and is now living aboard the ship which is in the final outfitting and provisioning processes. Fincantieri plans to hand the ship over to Carnival Corp on May 30 (2013), and it is expected to depart for Southampton on May 31, where it will arrive on June 7.  The photos below were taken during the final sea trials in the Adriatic.

 

 

 

Photos courtesy of Princess Cruises.