Princess Cruise Lines
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Princess Cruises is an American
cruise line A cruise line is a company (law), company that operates cruise ships that operate on Cruising (maritime), ocean or River cruise, rivers and which markets cruises to the public. Cruise lines are distinct from Passenger ship, passenger lines whic ...
owned by
Carnival Corporation & plc Carnival Corporation & plc is a British and American cruise operator with a combined fleet of over ninety vessels across eight cruise line brands. A dual-listed company, Carnival is composed of the Panama-incorporated, US-headquartered Carnival ...
. The company headquarters are in
Santa Clarita, California Santa Clarita (; Spanish for "Little St. Clare") is a city in northwestern Los Angeles County, California, United States. With a 2020 census population of 228,673, it is the third-most populous city in Los Angeles County, the 17th-most popul ...
and is incorporated in
Bermuda Bermuda is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The closest land outside the territory is in the American state of North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. Bermuda is an ...
. As of 2025, it is the sixth largest cruise line by net revenue. It was previously a subsidiary of
P&O Princess Cruises P&O Princess Cruises plc was a shipping company that existed between 2000 and 2003, operating the P&O Cruises, Princess Cruises, P&O Cruises Australia, A'Rosa Cruises, AIDA Cruises and Ocean Village (company), Ocean Village branded cruise lines ...
. The line has 15 ships cruising global itineraries that are marketed to both American and international passengers. In the 1980s, Princess rose in prominence after American television series ''
The Love Boat ''The Love Boat'' is an American romantic comedy-drama television series created by Wilford Lloyd Baumes that originally aired on ABC from September 24, 1977, to May 24, 1986. In addition, three TV movies aired before the regular series pre ...
'' was set primarily on the ''
Pacific Princess MS ''Azamara Onward'', formerly ''R Three'' and ''Pacific Princess'', is a cruise ship owned and operated by Azamara Cruises since 2022. She was built in 1999 by the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France for Renaissance C ...
'' in its weekly episodes, and the brand has since continued to invoke its connection to the series.


History


1965–1973: Early years

Princess Cruises began in 1965, when founder Stanley McDonald chartered
Canadian Pacific Limited Canadian Pacific Limited was created in 1971 to own properties formerly owned by Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR), a transportation and mining giant in Canada. In October 2001, CPR completed the corporate spin-offs of each of the remaining business ...
's
Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...
cruise ship ''Princess Patricia'' for
Mexican Riviera The Mexican Riviera refers collectively to twenty cities and lagoons lying on the western coast of Mexico. Although there are long distances between these cities, they are often collectively referred to as the ''Mexican Riviera'' because of th ...
cruises from
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
during a time when she would have usually been laid up for the winter. However, ''Princess Pat'', as she was fondly called, had never been designed for tropical cruising, lacking air-conditioning, and Princess ended her charter in favor of a more purpose-built cruise ship ''Italia''. Princess, who marketed the ship as ''Princess Italia'', but never officially renamed her, used the ship to inaugurate their Mexican Riviera cruises out of Los Angeles and did not receive the Princess logo on her funnel until 1967. In 1969, ''Princess Italia'' was used on Alaskan cruises from San Francisco, but by 1973, the charter was canceled, and ''Italia'' returned to Europe on charter to Costa Cruise Line. Princess's third charter ship was Costa's '' Carla C''. Originally,
Compagnie Générale Transatlantique The Compagnie Générale Transatlantique (CGT, and commonly named "Transat"), typically known overseas as the French Line, was a French shipping company. Established in 1855 by the brothers Émile and Issac Péreire under the name ''Compagnie ...
's SS ''Flandre'', the ship had been purchased by Costa in the late 1960s and given a major rebuilding. Almost immediately after completion, the ship was chartered to Princess, and it was on board the ship, which was marketed as, but again not officially renamed, ''Princess Carla'', that Jeraldine Saunders wrote the first chapters of her nonfiction book ''The Love Boats.''


1974–1987: P&O acquires Princess

Britain's Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation Company (P&O), which by 1960 was the world's largest shipping company, with 320 oceangoing vessels, acquired Princess Cruise Lines in 1974 and their '' Spirit of London'' (originally to have been Norwegian Cruise Line's ''Seaward'') was transferred to the Princess fleet, becoming the first ''Sun Princess''. The two ships that were to be featured heavily in the television series ''
The Love Boat ''The Love Boat'' is an American romantic comedy-drama television series created by Wilford Lloyd Baumes that originally aired on ABC from September 24, 1977, to May 24, 1986. In addition, three TV movies aired before the regular series pre ...
'' were built in 1971 at
Nordseewerke Nordseewerke Emden GmbH (sometimes abbreviated NSWE, in English: North Sea Company) was a shipbuilding company, located in the Emden Harbor of the north German city of Emden. Founded in 1903, shipbuilding ended in 2010, and the company was taken ...
for Flagship Cruises and originally named the ''Sea Venture'' (for the original ''
Sea Venture ''Sea Venture'' was a seventeenth-century English sailing ship, part of the Third Supply mission flotilla to the Jamestown Colony in 1609. She was the 300 ton flagship of the London Company. During the voyage to Virginia, ''Sea Venture'' encount ...
'', the 1609 wreck of which resulted in the settlement of
Bermuda Bermuda is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The closest land outside the territory is in the American state of North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. Bermuda is an ...
) and ''Island Venture''. In 1974, P&O purchased them for their Princess division, and they served as ''
Pacific Princess MS ''Azamara Onward'', formerly ''R Three'' and ''Pacific Princess'', is a cruise ship owned and operated by Azamara Cruises since 2022. She was built in 1999 by the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France for Renaissance C ...
'' and '' Island Princess'' respectively. A part-time addition to the Princess fleet was the former Swedish transatlantic liner ''Kungsholm'', purchased by P&O from Flagship Cruises in 1978, and then restyled and rebuilt in Bremen as ''
Sea Princess MS ''Dream'' is a cruise ship owned by Tianjin Orient International Cruise Line from 2023. She was built in Italy in 1998 as the ''Sea Princess'' for Princess Cruises, which operated her until 2020, except for a short period (2003–2005) with ...
''. She was initially based in
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
as a P&O ship until 1981 when her role there was taken over by ''Oriana''. After that, she alternated between P&O and Princess colours as she moved between fleets. ''Sea Princess'' returned to the P&O UK fleet permanently and in 1995 and was renamed MV ''Victoria'' to allow a then-new Princess ship to be named ''
Sea Princess MS ''Dream'' is a cruise ship owned by Tianjin Orient International Cruise Line from 2023. She was built in Italy in 1998 as the ''Sea Princess'' for Princess Cruises, which operated her until 2020, except for a short period (2003–2005) with ...
''. In 1981, Princess began calling at the cruise line's first private Caribbean destination, Palm Island in the
Grenadines The Grenadines () is a chain of small islands that lie on a line between the larger islands of Saint Vincent and Grenada in the Lesser Antilles. Nine are inhabited and open to the public (or ten, if the offshore island of Young Island is counted ...
. The first P&O Princess Cruises purpose-built cruise ship was ''Royal Princess,'' christened by
Princess Diana Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997), was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William ...
in 1984, she was the largest new British passenger ship in a decade, and one of the first, if not the first, ships to completely dispense with interior cabins. The ship served in
P&O Cruises P&O Cruises is a British cruise line based at Carnival House in Southampton, England, operated by Carnival Corporation & plc#Carnival UK, Carnival UK and owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. It was originally a subsidiary of the freight transp ...
fleet as ''
Artemis In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, Artemis (; ) is the goddess of the hunting, hunt, the wilderness, wild animals, transitions, nature, vegetation, childbirth, Kourotrophos, care of children, and chastity. In later tim ...
'' until 2011. In 1986, P&O Princess Cruises acquired Tour Alaska, which operated on the
Alaska Railroad The Alaska Railroad is a Class II railroad that operates freight and passenger trains in the state of Alaska. The railroad's mainline runs between Seward, Alaska, Seward on the southern coast and Fairbanks, Alaska, Fairbanks, near the center of ...
. Based in
Anchorage, Alaska Anchorage, officially the Municipality of Anchorage, is the List of cities in Alaska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Alaska. With a population of 291,247 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it contains nearly 40 percent of ...
,
Princess Tours ''Princess Tours'' is an Alaskan sightseeing passenger car service owned by Princess Cruises and operated by its Rail Division. Princess Tours runs ten cars a day (five north, five south) from Anchorage to Fairbanks on the Alaska Railroad, stopp ...
now operates ten luxury
railcars A railcar (not to be confused with the generic term railroad car, railroad car or railway car) is a self-propelled Rail transport, railway vehicle designed to transport passengers. The term "railcar" is usually used in reference to a trai ...
with full-service scenic tours of
Denali Denali (), federally designated as Mount McKinley, is the highest mountain peak in North America, with a summit elevation of above sea level. It is the tallest mountain in the world from base to peak on land, measuring . On p. 20 of Helm ...
(formerly Mount McKinley) and can accommodate over 700 passengers per day. That same year, Princess unveiled Princess Bay, located at Saline Bay on the Caribbean island of
Mayreau Mayreau is the smallest inhabited island of the Grenadines The Grenadines () is a chain of small islands that lie on a line between the larger islands of Saint Vincent and Grenada in the Lesser Antilles. Nine are inhabited and open to the pub ...
. Princess Bay was the cruise line's second private island resort, replacing Palm Island, and was marketed as "every castaway's first choice," primarily featured on the cruise line's Caribbean itineraries from
San Juan, Puerto Rico San Juan ( , ; Spanish for "Saint John the Baptist, John") is the capital city and most populous Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality in the Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the ...
, but is now no longer a Princess private resort.


1988–1994: Sitmar acquisition, Princess Cays

P&O Princess Cruises acquired Sitmar Line in 1988 and transferred all of its major tonnage to Princess, including three cruise ships then under construction. ''
Dawn Princess ''Star Voyager'' (previously known as ''Dawn Princess'' and ''Pacific Explorer'') is a cruise ship previously operated by P&O Cruises Australia, a cruise line brand owned by the Carnival Corporation & plc. She is a built by Fincantieri at the ...
'' and '' Fair Princess'' were both ex-Cunard, and the former Sitmar ''Fairsky'' became Princess's '' Sky Princess''. The first of the three new Sitmar ships came into the Princess brand in 1989 as '' Star Princess'', the largest British exclusively cruising ship. Two 70,000 GT cruise ships designed originally by famed architect
Renzo Piano Renzo Piano (; born 14 September 1937) is an Italian architect. His notable works include the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris (with Richard Rogers, 1977), The Shard in London (2012), Kansai International Airport in Osaka (1994), the Whitney ...
entered service in 1990 as ''
Crown Princess A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title, crown princess, is held by a woman who is heir apparent or is married to the heir apparent. ''Crown princ ...
'' and ''
Regal Princess ''Regal Princess'' may refer to one of the following ships: * , in service with Princess Cruise Line Princess Cruises is an American cruise line owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. The company headquarters are in Santa Clarita, California ...
'', bringing Princess's fleet up to ten deluxe cruise ships. This greatly enlarged the Princess fleet by eventually adding six ships, making it a major competitor with the other Caribbean cruise lines.


Princess Cays

In 1991, Princess Cruises began developing their third ever Caribbean private resort named
Princess Cays Princess Cays is a tourist resort at the southern end of the island of Eleuthera, The Bahamas. It is owned by Carnival Corporation, which owns Princess Cruises, among others. Carnival Corporation also owns nearby Half Moon Cay. Contrary to the im ...
located on the southern tip of the island of
Eleuthera Eleuthera () refers both to a single island in the archipelagic state of the The Bahamas, Commonwealth of the Bahamas and to its associated group of smaller islands. Eleuthera forms a part of the Great Bahama Bank. The island of Eleuthera incor ...
in the
Bahamas The Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an archipelagic and island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean. It contains 97 per cent of the archipelago's land area and 88 per cent of its population. ...
. The development was reported to cost $1.2 million and was unveiled in 1992, becoming an exclusive port of call for the cruise line's Western Caribbean itineraries. The private destination is also shared between sister brands,
Carnival Cruise Line Carnival Cruise Line is an international cruise line with headquarters in Doral, Florida. The company is a subsidiary of Carnival Corporation & plc. Its logo is a funnel (ship), funnel shaped like a whale's tail, with a red, white, and blue colo ...
and Holland America Line. The resort suffered from a fire in January 2019 that damaged several buildings along the south side of the island.


1995–1999: Record-breaking fleet modernization

In the early 1990s, Princess was operating a fleet of mostly second-hand ships, with the majority having been inherited from the Sitmar Cruises acquisition. The last purpose-built Princess new build had been the Royal Princess in 1984, and the 3 recent inherited new builds had all been designed for Sitmar Cruises. A new building project was commenced with the first new build debuting in 1995 with ''
Sun Princess Sun Princess may refer to: * ''Sun Princess'' (ship), various ships * Sun Princess (horse), a Thoroughbred racehorse * Sun Princess, the title given to the second place winner of the Sun and Salsa Festival pageant See also * Princess Sun Prin ...
'' as the lead vessel for the ''Sun''-class. This was the first of four ships in the class, followed by ''Dawn Princess'', ''Sea Princess'', and ''Ocean Princess''. At the same time Princess began transferring some of its older ships to parent company
P&O Cruises P&O Cruises is a British cruise line based at Carnival House in Southampton, England, operated by Carnival Corporation & plc#Carnival UK, Carnival UK and owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. It was originally a subsidiary of the freight transp ...
and their subsidiaries P&O Australia. ''
Dawn Princess ''Star Voyager'' (previously known as ''Dawn Princess'' and ''Pacific Explorer'') is a cruise ship previously operated by P&O Cruises Australia, a cruise line brand owned by the Carnival Corporation & plc. She is a built by Fincantieri at the ...
'' left the fleet in 1993, ''
Sea Princess MS ''Dream'' is a cruise ship owned by Tianjin Orient International Cruise Line from 2023. She was built in Italy in 1998 as the ''Sea Princess'' for Princess Cruises, which operated her until 2020, except for a short period (2003–2005) with ...
'' in 1995, ''Golden Princess'', 1996, '' Fair Princess'' in 1997, '' Island Princess'' in 1999.


''Grand''-class

Princess unveiled its first ''Grand''-class vessel in 1998, the ''
Grand Princess ''Grand Princess'' is a cruise ship owned by Princess Cruises. It was built in 1998 by Fincantieri Cantieri Navali Italiani in Monfalcone, Italy, with yard number 5956, at a cost of approximately US$450 million. She was the largest and most ex ...
'', which debuted on May 26, and was christened by
Olivia de Havilland Dame Olivia Mary de Havilland (; July 1, 1916July 26, 2020) was a British and American actress. The major works of her cinematic career spanned from 1935 to 1988. She appeared in 49 feature films and was one of the leading actresses of her tim ...
. At the time, the $450 million
Fincantieri Fincantieri S.p.A. () is an Italian shipbuilding company based in Trieste, Italy. Already the largest shipbuilder in Europe, after the acquisition of Vard in 2013, Fincantieri group doubled in size to become the fourth largest in the world (2014 ...
-built vessel was the largest passenger ship ever commissioned and completed. Two more ships in the class, '' Golden Princess'' and '' Star Princess,'' followed, pioneering the design that carried on through the following six vessels in the class, with the last ship delivered in 2008.


2000–2002: P&O Princess spun off

On October 23, 2000, the
Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company P&O (in full, The Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company) was a British shipping and logistics company dating from the early 19th century. Formerly a public company, it was sold to DP World in March 2006 for £3.9 billion. DP World ...
(P&O) spun-off its passenger division to form an independent company, P&O Princess Cruises. In 2001, Princess Cruises headquarters moved from
Century City Century City is a 176-acre (71.2 ha) neighborhood and business district in Los Angeles, California, United States. Located on the Westside to the south of Santa Monica Boulevard around 10 miles (16 km) west of downtown Los Angeles, Cent ...
to
Santa Clarita Santa Clarita (; Spanish for "Little St. Clare") is a city in northwestern Los Angeles County, California, United States. With a 2020 census population of 228,673, it is the third-most populous city in Los Angeles County, the 17th-most populo ...
, near the
Westfield Valencia Town Center Valencia Town Center (formerly Westfield Valencia Town Center) is a shopping mall in the neighborhood of Valencia in Santa Clarita, California. Centennial has owned the mall since September 1, 2023. The previous owner, Westfield Group had acqui ...
. With the debut of ''Golden Princess'' in North America in 2001, ''Sky Princess'' was deployed to Australia for
P&O Cruises Australia P&O Cruises Australia was a British-American owned cruise line with operational headquarters as part of Carnival Australia, based in Chatswood, New South Wales, Australia. Originally a sister company of P&O Cruises in the United Kingdom, it wa ...
in 2000 and replace ''Fair Princess. Sky Princess'' was transformed into ''Pacific Sky'' to become the sister brand's first modern-era cruise ship for the recently spun off
P&O Cruises Australia P&O Cruises Australia was a British-American owned cruise line with operational headquarters as part of Carnival Australia, based in Chatswood, New South Wales, Australia. Originally a sister company of P&O Cruises in the United Kingdom, it wa ...
. ''Star Princess'' commenced operations in March 2002 and became the first "mega-ship" to operate from the West Coast on a full-time basis. In June 2002, ''Crown Princess'' was transferred to P&O Princess's new start-up brand, A'Rosa Cruises, to be the only cruise ship in A'Rosa's fleet to help launch the brand. In 2002 , famous as the ship from ''
The Love Boat ''The Love Boat'' is an American romantic comedy-drama television series created by Wilford Lloyd Baumes that originally aired on ABC from September 24, 1977, to May 24, 1986. In addition, three TV movies aired before the regular series pre ...
'', left the Princess fleet after 27 years of service with the line, and last of the original Princess fleet.


''Coral''-class introduction

In 2002 and 2003 Princess debuted two
panamax Panamax and New Panamax (or Neopanamax) are terms for the size limits for ships traveling through the Panama Canal. The limits and requirements are published by the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) in a publication titled "Vessel Requirements". ...
ships, the '' Coral Princess'' and '' Island Princess''. Built to be the maximum sized ships to transit the Panama Canal, they were assigned for longer Southern Caribbean and Panama Canal cruises. They would also incorporate the ship engineering trend of the time of having additional gas turbine engines. This was emphasized in the ship's design with giant decorative faux turbines on each side of the funnel.


''R''-class ships acquisition

Princess eventually acquired two former Renaissance ships for the line starting in 2002. They were deployed for longer and more exotic destination cruises. The ships joining the fleet were '' Tahitian Princess'', which was first based in Tahiti before being later renamed ''
Ocean Princess ''Ocean Princess'' may refer to the following cruise ships: * , operated by Princess Cruises Princess Cruises is an American cruise line owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. The company headquarters are in Santa Clarita, California and is inco ...
'', and ''
Pacific Princess MS ''Azamara Onward'', formerly ''R Three'' and ''Pacific Princess'', is a cruise ship owned and operated by Azamara Cruises since 2022. She was built in 1999 by the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France for Renaissance C ...
'', reviving the famous name of the ship featured on ''The Love Boat''.


2003–2009: Carnival acquires P&O Princess

P&O Princess Cruises merged with Carnival Corporation on April 17, 2003, to form the world's largest cruise operating company in a deal worth US$5.4 billion. As a result of the merger, Carnival Corporation and P&O Princess were integrated to form
Carnival Corporation & plc Carnival Corporation & plc is a British and American cruise operator with a combined fleet of over ninety vessels across eight cruise line brands. A dual-listed company, Carnival is composed of the Panama-incorporated, US-headquartered Carnival ...
, with a portfolio of eleven cruise ship brands. It is a
dual-listed company A dual-listed company or DLC is a corporate structure in which two corporations function as a single operating business through a legal equalization agreement, but retain separate legal identities and stock exchange listings. Virtually all DLCs a ...
, registered in both the United States and the United Kingdom, with the former P&O Princess Cruises being relisted as Carnival plc, more commonly known as Carnival UK, which holds executive control over
Cunard Line The Cunard Line ( ) is a British shipping and an international cruise line based at Carnival House at Southampton, England, operated by Carnival UK and owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. Since 2011, Cunard and its four ships have been r ...
and
P&O Cruises P&O Cruises is a British cruise line based at Carnival House in Southampton, England, operated by Carnival Corporation & plc#Carnival UK, Carnival UK and owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. It was originally a subsidiary of the freight transp ...
. As an American-based company, executive control of Princess Cruises was transferred to Carnival's American operations, with the formation of the Holland America Group umbrella, which comprises Princess,
Holland America Line Holland America Line N.V. (HAL) is an American cruise line operating as a subsidiary of Carnival Corporation & plc. Founded in 1873 in Rotterdam, Netherlands as the Netherlands-America Steamship Company (NASM), the company operated regular trans ...
,
Seabourn Cruise Line Seabourn Cruise Line is a luxury cruise line headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It is owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. History Seabourn Cruise Line was founded in 1986 under the name "Signet Cruise Lines" by the Norwegian private inve ...
, and
P&O Cruises Australia P&O Cruises Australia was a British-American owned cruise line with operational headquarters as part of Carnival Australia, based in Chatswood, New South Wales, Australia. Originally a sister company of P&O Cruises in the United Kingdom, it wa ...
. In 2005, Princess swapped two ships between it and sister brand P&O. The ''
Royal Princess Royal Princess may refer to: Ships * Any number of a list of ships named ''Royal Princess'' Princess Cruises ships ''Royal Princess'' is a name carried by several ships operated by Princess Cruises: * , in service as ''Royal Princess'' from 1984 ...
'', Princess Cruises first purpose-built ship, was transferred to
P&O Cruises P&O Cruises is a British cruise line based at Carnival House in Southampton, England, operated by Carnival Corporation & plc#Carnival UK, Carnival UK and owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. It was originally a subsidiary of the freight transp ...
in April after 21 years of service with the line. Princess reacquired ''
Sea Princess MS ''Dream'' is a cruise ship owned by Tianjin Orient International Cruise Line from 2023. She was built in Italy in 1998 as the ''Sea Princess'' for Princess Cruises, which operated her until 2020, except for a short period (2003–2005) with ...
'' in May from P&O, which it had transferred over just two years prior. On April 3, 2008,
Micky Arison Micky Arison (; born June 29, 1949) is an Israeli-American billionaire businessman and chairman of Carnival Corporation, the world's largest cruise operator. From 1979 until 2013, he was also the company's chief executive officer. Arison is al ...
, the chairman of Carnival Corporation & plc, stated that due to the low value of the
United States dollar The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...
because of the
recession In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction that occurs when there is a period of broad decline in economic activity. Recessions generally occur when there is a widespread drop in spending (an adverse demand shock). This may be tr ...
, inflation and high shipbuilding costs, the company would not be ordering any new ships for their U.S.-based brands (Princess,
Carnival Cruise Line Carnival Cruise Line is an international cruise line with headquarters in Doral, Florida. The company is a subsidiary of Carnival Corporation & plc. Its logo is a funnel (ship), funnel shaped like a whale's tail, with a red, white, and blue colo ...
, and Holland America Line) before the economic situation improved.


2010–2021: ''Royal''-class, COVID-19 pandemic

In May 2010, Carnival Corporation & plc signed a contract with
Fincantieri Fincantieri S.p.A. () is an Italian shipbuilding company based in Trieste, Italy. Already the largest shipbuilder in Europe, after the acquisition of Vard in 2013, Fincantieri group doubled in size to become the fourth largest in the world (2014 ...
for the construction of two new 3,600-passenger ships, known as the ''Royal-''class cruise ships, for Princess. At more than , the ''Royal''-class vessels became the largest ships ever constructed for Princess. Named in honor of Princess's former vessels bearing the ''Royal'' name, ''
Royal Princess Royal Princess may refer to: Ships * Any number of a list of ships named ''Royal Princess'' Princess Cruises ships ''Royal Princess'' is a name carried by several ships operated by Princess Cruises: * , in service as ''Royal Princess'' from 1984 ...
'' entered service in 2013 and became Princess's flagship vessel; she was quickly followed by ''
Regal Princess ''Regal Princess'' may refer to one of the following ships: * , in service with Princess Cruise Line Princess Cruises is an American cruise line owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. The company headquarters are in Santa Clarita, California ...
'' in 2014. In 2017, Princess further invested in
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
via the delivery of their third ''Royal''-class ship, ''
Majestic Princess ''Majestic Princess'' is a British-registered operated by Princess Cruises, a subsidiary of Carnival Corporation & plc. Built by Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri in Monfalcone and delivered in March 2017, she became the third ''Royal-''class s ...
'', which was designed for the
Chinese Chinese may refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people identified with China, through nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **Han Chinese, East Asian ethnic group native to China. **'' Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic ...
-speaking market and scheduled to homeport in
Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
. Following the delivery of ''Sky Princess'' in October 2019, Princess received two more ''Royal''-class ships ('' Enchanted Princess'' and '' Discovery Princess'') to complete the class in the fleet with six vessels.


COVID-19 outbreak

In 2020, Princess became the first major cruise line to be affected by the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
after an outbreak onboard ''Diamond Princess'' in February led 712 of the 3,711 people on board to become infected. The ship's outbreak and quarantine in
Yokohama is the List of cities in Japan, second-largest city in Japan by population as well as by area, and the country's most populous Municipalities of Japan, municipality. It is the capital and most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a popu ...
elicited global criticism, both for Japan's handling of its mandated quarantine procedures at the time and for Princess after it was reported Princess had initially assumed there was only minimal risk and had only initiated the lowest-level protocols for any outbreaks prior to the quarantine. Subsequent large-scale outbreaks onboard several more Princess vessels, including ''Ruby Princess'' in Australia and ''Grand Princess'' in California, accelerated Princess's suspension of operations as the broader industry proceeded into the pandemic-induced hiatus. Amid the operational pause in 2020, Princess parted ways with four ships in advance of their initially projected timelines after increased speculation about a sale surrounded the brand's oldest ships. This came after Carnival Corporation revealed its goals to reduce overall fleet tonnage in a bid to reduce costs. In September, Princess sold its remaining two ''Sun''-class ships, ''Sun Princess'' and ''Sea Princess.'' ''Sun Princess'' was later acquired by
Peace Boat is a global non-government organization headquartered in Japan established for the purpose of raising awareness and building connections internationally among groups that work for peace, human rights, environmental protection and sustainable de ...
to become its largest ship and subsequently renamed ''
Pacific World ''Pacific World'' (previously ''Sun Princess'') is a built in 1995 and operated by Peace Boat. At the time of her construction, she was one of the largest cruise ships in the world. She was the lead ship of her class that included sister shi ...
.'' ''Sea Princess'' was acquired by Chinese start-up Sanya International Cruise Development and renamed ''
Charming Charming may refer to: Fiction * ''Charming'' (film), a 2019 animated musical comedy film * Charming, a fictional town where the television series ''Sons of Anarchy ''Sons of Anarchy'' is an American Action film, action crime drama television ...
.'' The following month, in October, Princess announced the official transfer of ''Golden Princess'' and accelerated transfer of ''Star Princess'' to sister brand P&O Cruises Australia, marking the first two ''Grand''-class vessels to exit the fleet.


Post-pandemic recovery

Throughout the pause, Princess staffed all ships with skeleton crew who had been onboard for months longer than anticipated after the hiatus extended beyond original expectations. Princess resumed operations in July 2021 with a week-long voyage to Alaska from Seattle aboard ''Majestic Princess''. In a bid to rebuild consumer confidence, all guests were required to have received a
COVID-19 vaccine A COVID19 vaccine is a vaccine intended to provide acquired immunity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 ( COVID19). Knowledge about the structure and fun ...
14 days prior to departure. Rules were also enforced regarding the donning of face masks and
social distancing In public health, social distancing, also called physical distancing, (NB. Regula Venske is president of the PEN Centre Germany.) is a set of non-pharmaceutical interventions or measures intended to prevent the spread of a contagious dise ...
, and capacity was reduced during the initial phase of the resumption. The success of the first voyages was followed by the resumption of service on seven additional vessels by the end of November 2021, with the whole fleet operating by the end of November 2022 after the reentry of ''Diamond Princess''.


2022–present: Homeport expansion, ''Sphere''-class

After the success of the initial phased rollout of its resumption in the United States and amid the lingering uncertainty surrounding international travel restrictions related to the pandemic, in March 2022, Princess announced it would redeploy several ships from their originally scheduled distant homeports back to those in the United States. As a part of the redeployment, Princess revealed it would also return to the
Port of San Diego The Port of San Diego is a seaport in San Diego, California. It is located on San Diego Bay in southwestern San Diego County, and is a self-supporting district established in 1962 by an act of the California State Legislature. In addition to por ...
with ''Diamond Princess'' in September 2022 (later postponed to November 2022 as a result of "staffing challenges") after more than ten years away, and to the
Port of Galveston The Port of Galveston is the port of the city of Galveston, Texas, United States. It was established by a proclamation issued by the Congress of Mexico on October 17, 1825, while the land known today as Texas was still part of Mexico. The Port o ...
in December 2022 with ''Ruby Princess'' after a six-year absence. Princess has since made further expansions in its commitment to the American market with the stationing of the larger ''Regal Princess'' in Galveston, beginning in fall 2023, and the introduction of
Port Canaveral Port Canaveral is a cruise, cargo, and naval port in Brevard County, Florida, United States. In 2022, the port has the busiest cruise terminals in the world with over 4 million passengers passing through it during the fiscal year. Additional ...
to its network with ''Caribbean Princess'' to mark Princess's debut at the port in November 2024.


''Sphere''-class

In July 2018, Princess signed a memorandum of agreement with Fincantieri for the construction of two new 175,000 GT ships to be primarily powered by
liquefied natural gas Liquefied natural gas (LNG) is natural gas (predominantly methane, CH4, with some mixture of ethane, C2H6) that has been cooled to liquid form for ease and safety of non-pressurized storage or transport. It takes up about 1/600th the volume o ...
(LNG). The ships would become the largest vessels built in Italy and commissioned for Princess as well as the first in the fleet to run on LNG. The final contract was signed in March 2019, ushering in the development of the ships. Princess unveiled the names of the lead vessel and second ship as ''
Sun Princess Sun Princess may refer to: * ''Sun Princess'' (ship), various ships * Sun Princess (horse), a Thoroughbred racehorse * Sun Princess, the title given to the second place winner of the Sun and Salsa Festival pageant See also * Princess Sun Prin ...
'' and ''Star Princess'' in September 2022 and May 2023, respectively, with both being the third ships in the fleet's history to bear their respective names. ''Sun Princess'' made its debut in February 2024 after a short delay for additional technical work. ''Star Princess'' was also delayed and is now scheduled to sail beginning in September 2025.


Fleet


Current fleet


Future fleet


Former fleet


Accidents and incidents

Princess Cruises was involved in
litigation A lawsuit is a proceeding by one or more parties (the plaintiff or claimant) against one or more parties (the defendant) in a civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. ...
with
General Electric General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston. Over the year ...
in 1998 over
consequential damages Consequential damages, otherwise known as special damages, are damages that can be proven to have occurred because of the failure of one party to meet a contractual obligation, a breach of contract. From a legal standpoint, an enforceable contra ...
and lost profits resulting from a
contract A contract is an agreement that specifies certain legally enforceable rights and obligations pertaining to two or more parties. A contract typically involves consent to transfer of goods, services, money, or promise to transfer any of thos ...
the two parties entered into. General Electric was to provide inspection and repair services for ''Sky Princess''. Upon noticing surface
rust Rust is an iron oxide, a usually reddish-brown oxide formed by the reaction of iron and oxygen in the catalytic presence of water or air moisture. Rust consists of hydrous iron(III) oxides (Fe2O3·nH2O) and iron(III) oxide-hydroxide (FeO(OH) ...
on the
turbine A turbine ( or ) (from the Greek , ''tyrbē'', or Latin ''turbo'', meaning vortex) is a rotary mechanical device that extracts energy from a fluid flow and converts it into useful work. The work produced can be used for generating electrical ...
rotor, the turbine was brought ashore for cleaning and balancing, but good
metal A metal () is a material that, when polished or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electrical resistivity and conductivity, electricity and thermal conductivity, heat relatively well. These properties are all associated wit ...
was unintentionally removed. This destabilized the rotor, forcing Princess Cruises to cancel two 10-day cruises while additional work was performed. Princess originally prevailed, being awarded nearly $4.6 million. On
appeal In law, an appeal is the process in which Legal case, cases are reviewed by a higher authority, where parties request a formal change to an official decision. Appeals function both as a process for error correction as well as a process of cla ...
, however, the
judgement Judgement (or judgment) is the evaluation of given circumstances to make a decision. Judgement is also the ability to make considered decisions. In an informal context, a judgement is opinion expressed as fact. In the context of a legal tria ...
was reversed in favor of General Electric, and Princess Cruises only recovered the price of the contract, less than $232,000.


Ocean pollution

On August 26, 2013, the crew of ''Caribbean Princess'' deliberately discharged 4,227gallons of oil-contaminated waste off the southern coast of England. The discharge involved the illegal modification of the vessel's on-board pollution control systems, and was photographed by a newly hired engineer. When the ship subsequently berthed at
Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...
, the engineer resigned his position and reported the discharge to the UK
Maritime and Coastguard Agency The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) is an executive agency of the United Kingdom that is responsible for implementing British and international maritime law and safety policy. It works to prevent the loss of lives at sea and to prevent mar ...
. An investigation launched by the U.S. Department of Justice Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD) found that the practice had been taking place on ''Caribbean Princess'' and four other Princess ships – ''Star Princess'', ''Grand Princess'', ''Coral Princess'', and ''Golden Princess'' – since 2005. In December 2016, Princess agreed to plead guilty to seven felony charges and pay a $40 million penalty. The charges related to illegal discharges off the coasts of Florida, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. As part of the agreement, cruise ships from eight Carnival companies, including
Carnival Cruise Line Carnival Cruise Line is an international cruise line with headquarters in Doral, Florida. The company is a subsidiary of Carnival Corporation & plc. Its logo is a funnel (ship), funnel shaped like a whale's tail, with a red, white, and blue colo ...
and
Holland America Line Holland America Line N.V. (HAL) is an American cruise line operating as a subsidiary of Carnival Corporation & plc. Founded in 1873 in Rotterdam, Netherlands as the Netherlands-America Steamship Company (NASM), the company operated regular trans ...
, are required to operate for five years under a court-supervised environmental compliance plan with independent audits and a court-appointed monitor. The fine was the "largest-ever criminal penalty involving deliberate vessel pollution." For violation of the probation terms of 2016,
Carnival Corporation Carnival (known as Shrovetide in certain localities) is a festive season that occurs at the close of the Christian pre-Lenten period, consisting of Quinquagesima or Shrove Sunday, Shrove Monday, and Shrove Tuesday or Mardi Gras. Carnival typi ...
and Princess were ordered to pay an additional $20 million penalty in 2019. The new violations included discharging plastic into waters in the Bahamas, falsifying records, and interfering with court supervision.


COVID-19 pandemic

During the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, several ships from the cruise line became major clusters of infection of the disease, including ''Diamond Princess'' and ''Ruby Princess'', spreading it around the world. By February, 712 cases had developed on ''Diamond Princess'', of which 11 eventually died. This drew worldwide attention and led to several countries repatriating their citizens from the ship. Shortly before the disease was declared a pandemic, and with over 2700 passengers on board, ''Ruby Princess'' sailed into international waters despite a global increase of confirmed cases of COVID-19. By mid April, there were 852 confirmed cases among Australian passengers alone, and 21 deaths. The subsequent discharge of infected passengers into
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
worsened the national pandemic in the country and caused a humanitarian crisis. Other related incidents: * ''Sun Princess'' was not allowed to dock at a port in
Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...
on 13 February 2020 as it had visited
Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...
, where there were cases of
SARS-CoV-2 Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2) is a strain of coronavirus that causes COVID-19, the respiratory illness responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic. The virus previously had the Novel coronavirus, provisional nam ...
, less than 14 days before. The ship docked at
Réunion Réunion (; ; ; known as before 1848) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France. Part of the Mascarene Islands, it is located approximately east of the isl ...
on 1 March, but passengers were met by a crowd of about 30 people who insisted that the passengers must be inspected for SARS-CoV-2, and tried to prevent them from leaving the port area. Missiles were thrown at passengers, and the police deployed tear gas. * A crew member on ''Grand Princess'' had transferred to ''Royal Princess'' fifteen days before, the
CDC The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the national public health agency of the United States. It is a United States federal agency under the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and is headquartered in Atlanta, ...
issued a "no-sail order" on 8 March 2020, due to
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...
infections, prompting Princess Cruises to cancel the ship's seven-day cruise to Mexico before it departed
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
. * On 7 March, ''Regal Princess'' tested two crewmembers for
SARS-CoV-2 Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2) is a strain of coronavirus that causes COVID-19, the respiratory illness responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic. The virus previously had the Novel coronavirus, provisional nam ...
, and delayed docking at
Port Everglades Port Everglades is a seaport in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, located in Broward County. Port Everglades is one of South Florida's foremost economic engines, as it is the gateway for both international trade and cruise vacations. In 2022, Port Eve ...
for almost a day while waiting for test results to come back. ** A passenger on board contracted COVID-19 on the cruise and died, resulting in the ship being quarantined off the coast of
San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
because of further infections. * On 20 March 2020, it was announced that three passengers and a crew member of ''Ruby Princess'' had tested positive for COVID-19. The ship had docked in
Sydney Harbour Port Jackson, commonly known as Sydney Harbour, is a ria, natural harbour on the east coast of Australia, around which Sydney was built. It consists of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove River, Lane ...
, and the passengers had disembarked before the results came back positive. The ship had returned to Sydney with 1,100 crew members and 2,700 passengers, and 13 people that were sick were tested for the virus. On April 5, 2020, the 
New South Wales Police Force The New South Wales Police Force is a law enforcement agency of the state of New South Wales, Australia, established in 1862. With more than 17,000 police officers, it is the largest police organisation in Australia, policing an area of 801,60 ...
announced they had launched a criminal investigation into whether the operator of the ''Ruby Princess'' downplayed potential coronavirus cases before thousands of passengers disembarked in Sydney. *On 6 January 2021, Princess Cruises announced that it will cancel cruises through 14 May 2021. The vast majority of all cruise lines's sailings were under suspension in late 2020. As of 6 January 2021, all Princess sailings were cancelled to at least 14 May 2021.


References


External links

* {{Authority control 1965 establishments in California American companies established in 1965 Carnival Corporation & plc Companies based in Los Angeles County, California Companies formerly listed on the London Stock Exchange Cruise lines Santa Clarita, California Transport companies established in 1965