Majestic Princess

Launched in 2017, Majestic Princess cruise ship is the 3rd Royal-class vessel in the Princess Cruises fleet, together with the fleet mates Royal Princess (2013), Regal Princess (2014), Sky Princess (2019) and Enchanted Princess (2020). One more vessel of the same class will be constructed for Princess, with a scheduled launch in 2022. From the same class is also the P&O UK ship Britannia (2015).

History - construction and ownership

Princess Cruises is a US cruise company headquartered in Beverly Hills CA. A former subsidiary of P&O Princess Cruises (founded 1977), in 2003, the company merged with Carnival Corporation - world's largest passenger shipping company. Among Princess Cruises assets is the Caribbean private island resort Princess Cays (on Bahamas Eleuthera Island's southern end), located approx 80 km (50 ml) Nassau.

The 143,000-ton, 3,560-passenger Majestic Princess is among the largest cruise ships sailing the seas. The liner carries the Chinese name - Sheng Shigrave; Gong Zhu Hao on its hull, chosen by Carnival Corporation's Chinese employees. It is translated as “Grand World” (or “Grand Spirit”).

Signature features of sister-ships Regal and Royal include multiple dining venues; cantilevered SkyWalk; multi-story atrium; outdoor cinema Movies Under the Stars; adults-only Sanctuary complex. Tai Chi at sea, ballroom dancing, Chinese satellite TV channels and subtitled Hollywood movies are among the Chinese experiences of “Princess Class”, rolled out to the local cruise market.

Princess Cruises announced on February 8, 2016, on Chinese New Year, that its first cruise ship designed and built specifically for the China market, Majestic Princess (盛世公主号), is also the fleet's first vessel with the company's new livery design.

Also on February 8, 2016, the new ship reached a significant construction milestone when Majestic Princess “floated out” in its building dock at Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy. The ship met the ocean for the first time and the occasion was marked by a traditional ceremony.

Majestic Princess was scheduled for delivery on April 4, 2017, in Rome. The ship (homeported in Shanghai China) offers many of the same special features as Regal Princess and Royal Princess. Among those are a multistory atrium serving as a social hub; a top-deck glass-bottomed over-the-ocean SeaWalk (extending 28ft beyond the ship's edge), Princess Live! (interactive studio), Chef’s Table Lumiere (private dining room).

The 3,560-guest Majestic Princess ship boasts a number of new venues created specifically for China's cruising market. The following official Princess Cruises YouTube video reviews the ship's best features and signature amenities.

Cruise itinerary program

Majestic Princess itinerary program is based on year-round cruises from China to Japan and South Korea with roundtrip departures from homeport Shanghai China.

In 2018, the ship had scheduled two 14-day Grand Asia cruises between Shanghai and Singapore. Available to both Chinese and international cruise tourists, these 2018 itineraries visit South Korea, Vietnam, Thailand and Japan, including a late night visit to Hong Kong. The first cruise departs Shanghai on February 25, the second departs Singapore on March 11.

• During season 2018-2019 (September 2018 through March 2019), the ship is homeported in Sydney Australia. This makes it the largest Princess Cruises vessel ever to operate on the Australia - New Zealand market. After the Australian deployment, the ship returns back to China.
• During the inaugural Australian season, Majestic Princess had scheduled a total of 16 cruises to South Pacific island destinations, including Fiji, New Zealand, Tasmania. There were also 2 repositioning cruises - southbound (Shanghai to Sydney NSW) and northbound (Sydney to Hong Kong).
• In 2018 (April through July), the ship was homeported in Taiwan (Keelung) to offer roundtrip 3- and 4-night short-breaks and longer itineraries to Japan and China.
• Following the Taiwan-based program, the liner returns to Shanghai China, then will be deployed in Australia for winter 2018-2019 (September 2018 through March 2019).

Cabins

Most Majestic Princess staterooms are 220-230-sq.foot balcony rooms (1088). All outside staterooms (about 80% of all) have balconies, and many of them appeal to families with kids. There are a total of 1780 staterooms in 38 categories. 36 are the wheelchair accessible rooms. The largest aboard Majestic Princess is the Balcony Suite (440 ft2). The ship has no Oceanview cabins.

Shipboard dining options - Food and Drinks

There are many for-fee dining options onboard Majestic Princess, but guests who would rather not pay are offered enough quality and variety to satisfy. Those who prefer tradition can choose between the three main dining rooms.

World Fresh Marketplace is the buffet option, providing a more casual vibe. Passengers who want to have lunch in their swimsuits can take a burger from Trident Grill or a slice at Prego Pizzeria. Indoors, Alfredo's features delicious calzones, salads and thin-crust pizza.

Majestic Princess boasts two new restaurant concepts, Harmony and La Mer. Harmony is a modern speciality restaurant with a sophisticated Cantonese dinner menu by Michelin-star chef Richard Chen. La Mer offers authentic Parisian bistro experience with a fine dining dinner menu featuring French cuisine by three Michelin-star chef Emmanuel Renaut. Together, the two venues present passengers with exceptional Chinese and French dining experiences.

In addition, Majestic Princess guests also have the chance to taste Gong Cha, Chinese-style bubble milk tea, Crown Grill authentic American steakhouse experience, Lobster Grill & Dim Sum Bar, along with Alfredo's with "The Best Pizza at Sea".

Follows the complete list of Majestic Princess restaurants and food bars.

• Sabatini’s Restaurant (Italian speciality restaurant, a la carte: offers 3-course Italian/seafood menu; open between 6 p.m. -11 p.m., reservations recommended)
• La Mer by Three-Michelin Star Chef Emmanuel Renaut offers casual, French bistro-style dining with a contemporary twist inspired by the flavours of the French Alps and contrasts from the ocean. La Mer carries a cover charge of US$35 per person.
• Dining Room (midship location; offers “Anytime Dining” for Dinner; with “Wine Cellar” area serving “Wine Maker’s Dinner” for $40, capacity 12 guests)
• Harmony (haute cuisine Cantonese restaurant, developed in partnership with Chef Richard Chen - Wynn Las Vegas' Wing Lei)
• Alfredo’s Pizzeria (121-seat; the largest complimentary pizzeria at sea)
• Dining Room (forward Dining Room; offers “Anytime Dining” 5:30 p.m. -10 p.m.; serves “Wine Maker’s Dinner” package for $40)
• Dining Room (aft Dining Room; offers formal dining and two fixed dinner seatings at 6 p.m. or 8:15 p.m.; “Chef’s Table” private dining for $115, 12 guests)
• Ocean Terrace (speciality seafood bar)
• Crown Grill (160-seat steakhouse/seafood restaurant, reservations recommended; on select days serves British Pub Lunch, complimentary)
• Trident Grill & Prego Pizzeria (self-service, complimentary fast food bar)
• Calypso Cabana (food bar offering picnic baskets, desserts, champagne and wine packages)
• World Fresh Marketplace / The Court (self-service buffet restaurant, complimentary; "East Meets West" street food counter is an addition to the buffet)
• Swirls Bar (ice cream).

Shipboard entertainment options - Fun and Sport

The bulk of performance action takes place in Majestic's Princess Theater, situated on decks 6 and 7. The entertainment is excellent and varied, with a beat that is quite innovative. In addition to the production shows, the Princess theatre hosts other acts including vocalists and instrumentalists.

The Shops of Princess provide the highest quality products from name-brand manufacturers, including the luxury brands Cartier, Chopard, Bulgari, EFFY. As a "Chinese cruise ship", Majestic Princess also has karaoke rooms (each furnished with sofas, large TV, mini-bar) and new for Princess Cruises dining options (Cantonese restaurant, noodle bar, lobster bar, dim sum bar, French bistro).

Follows the complete list of Majestic Princess lounges, clubs and other entertainment venues for kids, teens and adults.

• The Piazza Atrium (3-deck open floor area; features live performances entertainment and lobby Bar Piazza)
• Princess Fine Arts Gallery; Photo Gallery & Shop; Limelight photo studio; Platinum Studio
• International Cafe (24-hour speciality coffee bar and patisserie)
• Vines Bar (wine/seafood/sushi bar)
• Gelato (the largest ice cream bar at sea)
• Library (with Internet stations); Internet Cafe (24-hour)
• Princess Majestic Theatre (2-level musical and show productions; hosts workshops, seminars, game shows)
• Celebrations Shop; Calypso Cove Shop; Essence Shop; Meridian Bay Shop; Facets Shop
• Club 6 Disco & Bar; Churchill’s Lounge & Bar (cigar bar); Bellini’s Bar; Crooners Lounge & Bar; Princess Live Lounge; Vista Lounge; Concierge Lounge (Suite guests only); SkyLight Bar; Seaview Bar
• Princess Majestic Casino
• Wheelhouse Bar (piano bar during the day and an English pub nightly)
• Lotus Spa complex; Beauty Salon; Fitness Center (with Aerobics Studio)
• Wedding Chapel
• Movies Under the Stars (LED screen outdoor cinema)
• The Game Lounge (Video Games Arcade); Teen Center; Youth Center; Remix Disco & Lounge (teen club)
• The Sanctuary (adult-only open-air area)
• SeaWalk (glass-bottomed cantilevered walkway, 18 m/60 ft long)
• Fountain Pool area; Retreat Pool area
• Princess Majestic Sports Central - Center Court (volleyball, basketball, European football); Tennis Tables, Game Lounge virtual gaming, The Greens golf nets, Golfing Cage, Laser Shooting; Jogging Track.

Fun facts: It takes 3 million man-hours to build a Royal-class liner. For its construction are used 37,000 tons of steel. For instance, about 12,000 tons of steel were used for constructing the Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. The paint used for the vessel is 95,000 gallons (360,000 L), which is two times more than the quantity consumed for Golden Gate Bridge (re-painted annually). The electrical cables wiring the whole vessel are long 2484 ml (4000 km) which is enough to link NYC with LA.

After Ovation of the Seas (Royal Caribbean), Majestic is the world's second cruise vessel specifically designed for Chinese passengers. It even has an alternative name in Mandarin - "Sheng Shì Gong Zhu Hao" (meaning "Grand Spirit").

On July 10, 2015, was held vessel's keel-laying ceremony at Fincantieri's Monfalcone shipyard. With the first keel block laid officially started the construction. The liner was delivered on March 29, 2017. The ceremony was attended by Micky Arison (Carnival Corporation's Chairman), Arnold Donald (Carnival Corporation's CEO), Stein Kruse (Holland America's CEO), Jan Swartz (Princess Cruises and Carnival Australia's President). Giampiero Massolo (Fincantieri's Chairman) and Giuseppe Bono (Fincantieri's CEO). It was mentioned at the delivery ceremony that between 1990-2017, Fincantieri has built 77 cruise ships (of which 54 between 2002-2017), plus other 30 vessels under construction.

On November 3, 2016, the sistership's construction officially started with the steel cutting ceremony at Fincantieri’s shipyard in Castellammare di Stabia. Fun fact is that in the period 1990-2016, Fincantieri constructed a total of 101 cruise ships.

On May 25, 2017, started ship's 37-day long relocation cruise from Europe to China (Rome to Shanghai via Suez Canal). The voyage featured the cultural exchange program "Telling the Chinese Story along the Silk Road Sea Route". The repositioning cruise featured numerous themed onboard events and live performances, among which were the "Ansai Youth Waist Drum" and "Luochuan Youth Yangge Dance" teams, "China National Orchestra", "China National Opera And Dance Drama Theater". This absolutely unique onboard enrichment program was enjoyed all the way to China by the ship's lucky 6500+ passengers. Along the reposition itinerary, the cruise ship called at a total of 22 "Silk Road" ports in Greece, Egypt, UAE, India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, China (Xiamen was the ever first Chinese cruise port visited), Taiwan, Japan, South Korea. For the list of ports of call see in the "inaugural cruise itineraries" tables that follow.

On July 9, 2017, in Shanghai China was held the vessel's christening ceremony lead by the Chinese godparents Yao Ming (Houston Rockets' basketball legend) and his wife - Ye Li. Yao Ming is an 8-time NBA All-Star with Houston Rockets and inductee into NBA Hall of Fame. The godfather-godmother couple established "The Yao Foundation" following the 2008 earthquake that devastated China's Sichuan Province. The organization built a total of 23 primary schools in the region and also extends sports education to the region's youth through basketball-related projects. The ship's naming ceremony was attended by Wang Hong (Baoshan District's party secretary and Shanghai International Cruise Business Institute's general director), Arnold Donald; (Carnival Corporation's President and CEO), Jan Swartz (Princess Cruises' and Carnival Australia's group president), as well as Chinese travel agent partners and Chinese media representatives.

Ship's Asian cruise itinerary program from homeport Shanghai started on July 11, 2017. In 2018, the liner had scheduled two 14-day "Grand Asia" itineraries between Shanghai and Singapore. Both cruises visit ports in Korea, Japan, Thailand and Vietnam, with longer port times. The first "Grand Asia" cruise departs from Shanghai on February 25, 2018. The 2nd "Grand Asia" voyage leaves from Singapore on March 11, 2018.

As managed by Costa Asia cruise vessel, Majestic Princess passengers of Chinese origin can use their Alipay accounts to pay for onboard services and products. The 2017-signed partnership between Carnival Corporation and Ant Financial Services Group (a subsidiary of Alibaba - China's biggest online trading company) enables Chinese cruise passengers on all Carnival Corp ships in Asia to use the Alipay mobile payment platform for onboard services and products (shopping, tours/excursions, food, drinks, etc). These expenditures are added to the passenger's cabin folio, then cleared via his/her Alipay account on a nightly basis.

Inaugural cruise itineraries 2017

In October 2015 was officially announced, that the Princess Majestic ship would be deployed in Asia. After its launch in 2017, the ship operated a series of Spring 2017 Mediterranean cruises, then was repositioned from Europe to Asia via Suez Canal. The cruise ship was based in China for year-round roundtrip itineraries from homeport Shanghai, China. During summer the ship operates on roundtrip Australia-New Zealand and South Pacific Islands cruises from homeport Sydney AU, with Australia-Asia relocation cruises.

Majestic Princess cruise itineraries include ports in Japan (Yokohama, Nagasaki, Kobe) and South Korea (Busan) and Hong Kong (China). In January 2017, the vessel successfully completed sea trials off Italy's coast.

The "Inaugural Cruise" (maiden voyage) started on April 4, 2017. The 5-night Adriatic Sea itinerary leaves out of Venice to Rome (Civitavecchia port). The ship operates on 7-, 14-, 21- and 28-night long Mediterranean Sea itineraries departing from the ports of Barcelona Spain, Piraeus (Athens) Greece and Rome Italy, before the relocation to Asia through Suez Canal.

• April 4 ("Inaugural Cruise") - the 5-day Maiden Voyage is a round-trip out of Rome (port Civitavecchia) visiting Kotor (Montenegro) and Corfu (Greece).
• The ship's 2017 cruises in Europe (between April 9 and May 14, 2017) were available for booking on December 3, 2015.
• The other two largest Princess ships Royal and Regal were also deployed in Europe in 2017, respectively, in the Mediterranean Sea (Royal) and Baltic Sea (Regal).

Fun fact is that this Princess ship has a namesake - the 2013-launched "Majestic MAERSK". The vessel is among the world's largest container ships (capacity 18,340 containers) and operated by MAERSK Line.

The following tables show the ship's Inaugural cruise itineraries with call ports, port times and USD prices per person (based on double occupancy inside cabin).

4-days Inaugural cruise from Trieste to Civitavecchia-Rome (from $420)

5-days Inaugural Mediterranean cruise round-trip from Rome (theme "Maiden Majestic Adriatic Sea", from $810)

14-days Inaugural Western Mediterranean cruise round-trip from Rome (theme "Majestic West Med Medley", from $4120)

14-days Inaugural Eastern Mediterranean cruise from Rome to Barcelona visiting Greek Isles (from $3000)

56-days repositioning cruise from Europe to China (Barcelona to Shanghai, from $6900)

Godspeed to the new ship!