Royal Princess

The 2013-built Royal Princess cruise ship is the 1st Royal-class vessel in the Princess Cruises fleet, together with the fleet mates Regal Princess (2014), Majestic Princess (2017), Sky Princess (2019), Enchanted Princess (2021) and Discovery Princess (2022). 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).

The vessel (IMO number 9584712) is currently Bermuda-flagged (MMSI 310661000) and registered in Hamilton.

History - construction and ownership

Princess Cruises is a US passenger shipping company headquartered in Beverly Hills CA. A former subsidiary of P&O Princess Cruises (1977-founded), in 2003, the company merged with Carnival Corporation - the 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 mi) from Nassau.

The 3600-passenger ship Royal Princess debuted in June 2013 with a series of 12-day Mediterranean voyages out of homeports Barcelona (Spain) and Venice (Italy). The sistership Regal Princess was inaugurated in May 2014. These ships are among the world's largest passenger ships, being built by Fincantieri Italy. Royal Princess features 17 decks, 14 bars, a large-sized premium Spa, SeaWalk (glass-enclosed walkway). The glass-bottomed SeaWalk offers stunning sea and port views from 128 ft / 39 m above waterline.

An interesting fact is that one of the newest ships of Princess Cruises features in a BBC program - the upcoming ‘Sea Cities’ series. The 3-part documentary based in Southampton UK visits several ports across the United Kingdom to view their events and activities, as well as meet seafarers and staff. Princess Cruises’ Royal Princess appears in ‘Sea Cities: Maritime Liverpool’ episode, highlighting what goes on behind the scenes of the 19-deck cruise vessel during a visit to the city. The 60-minute episode airs on BBC2 on February 18, 2016.

Royal Princess was christened in 2013 by HRH, The Duchess of Cambridge. The ship called in Liverpool 7 times in 2015 on round Britain cruises.

Decks and Cabins

Royal Princess staterooms (1780 total, in 38 categories) include 350 Suites, 1088 Balcony and 342 Inside cabins, in 38 categories. The ship has no Oceanview cabins. Most outside accommodations (1438) have private step-out balconies. The ship also has 36 wheelchair-accessible cabins. The largest are the Balcony Suites (470 ft2 / 44 m2 plus 210 ft2 / 20 m2 terrace).

The boat has 18 decks, of which 15 are passenger-accessible and 8 with cabins.

Shipboard dining options - Food and Drinks

Onboard Royal Princess, there is a big emphasis on dining with a total of 16 spots to eat. For the MDR (main dining room) experience, Royal offers "anytime" and "traditional" evening dining in 3 different restaurant venues. The Allegro offers set-tablemates and set-seating options, while Concerto and Symphony are open seating (between 5:30 p.m. and 10 p.m.). All of the MDRs offer the same menu, with the most special items occurring on formal nights. All the three main dining rooms offer heart-healthy,

Lotus Spa and vegetarian menu items for passengers with dietary restrictions. Food and service are generally excellent at all meals. One of the greatest improvements on Royal Princess is the Horizon Court. The buffet area offers double the number of seats found on Emerald Princess, Ruby Princess and Crown Princess; Royal provides space for 350 outdoors and 900 indoors and also offers a bigger variety of table styles, including 2-tops and bistro-style "counter-height" dining tables.

Follows the complete list of Royal 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)
• Symphony Restaurant (midship location; offers “Anytime Dining” for Dinner; with “Wine Cellar” area serving “Wine Maker’s Dinner” for $40, capacity 12 guests)
• Alfredo’s Pizzeria (121-seat; the largest complimentary pizzeria at sea)
• Concerto Restaurant (forward Dining Room; offers “Anytime Dining” 5:30 p.m. -10 p.m.; serves “Wine Maker’s Dinner” package for $40)
• Allegro Restaurant (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)
• Horizon Court (self-service buffet restaurant, complimentary); Horizon Buffet and Horizon Terrace
• Swirls Bar (ice cream).

Shipboard entertainment options - Fun and Sport

Royal Princess cruise ship, that is some 20 % larger than Princess' next biggest vessels, introduces more of an evolution than a revolution for the line. The sole big move forward by the cruise liner, that is being named Royal Princess in tribute to Princess' 1st purpose-built ship, is the innovative SkyWalk, which is a cantilevered, glass-enclosed walkway which extends 28 feet beyond the edge of the vessel and 128 feet over the water. On the opposite side of the deck, the similarly designed 20-seat Seaview bar welcomes those who want to mix vistas with their vodka.

The bulk of performance action takes place in Royal's Princess Theater, situated on decks 6 and 7. The theatre features palladium-style seating; it's deep, and if you don't arrive early, you might find yourself in the back, which is far from the stage. However, there aren't any obstacles or bad sightlines. The entertainment is excellent and varied, with a beat that is quite innovative. Passengers are entertained while sailing with top-rated production shows performed live in Princess Theater: The Secret Silk (via a partnership with award-winning composer Stephen Schwartz) and Encore (inspired by “Bravo!”, the line’s top-rated show, and accompanied by onstage orchestra). In addition to the production shows, the Princess theatre hosts other acts including vocalists and instrumentalists.

Follows the complete list of Royal 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 Royal 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 Royal Casino
• Wheelhouse Bar (piano bar during the day and an English pub nightly)
• Royal’s 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
• Watercolor Fantasy, located on the top deck, captivates guests with brightly coloured lights illuminating the water and offering a show of pirouettes, waltzes and fountains shooting water up to 33ft high choreographed to music.
• Princess Royal Sports Central - Center Court (volleyball, basketball, European football); Tennis Tables, Game Lounge virtual gaming, The Greens golf nets, Golfing Cage, Laser Shooting; Jogging Track.

Itineraries

Royal Princess itinerary program was initially based on Mediterranean and Caribbean voyages (alternating seasonally) with departures from homeports Fort Lauderdale FL USA,Civitavecchia-Rome, Venice, Barcelona.

In 2019-2020, the ship operated Mexican Riviera roundtrips from Long Beach-Los Angeles CA USA. The new itinerary program included 27x voyages (5-days and 7-days long) visiting Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan and Puerto Vallarta. All 5-day "Cabo San Lucas Getaway" itineraries were with an overnight in Cabo.

Due to the Coronavirus crisis, the Royal Princess ship was paused for 2+ years (March 2020 thru April 2022). Operations were scheduled to restart on April 8, 2022, with homeporting in Vancouver BC Canada and voyages to Alaska and California. The Alaskan deployment replaced the previously planned Australia-New Zealand 2021-22 winter program (based on homeporting in Sydney NSW) which was rescheduled for winter 2022-23.

The Fincantieri Monfalcone-built liner debuted in June 2013 with a 2-day maiden voyage from Southampton to Channel Islands (Guernsey). This "preview cruise" (itinerary June 9-11, 2013) was roundtrip from Southampton to St Peter Port (Guernsey Island). The “Inaugural Cruise” (maiden voyage) was on June 16 (Mediterranean roundtrip out of Southampton) visiting ports in Portugal and Spain - Vigo, Lisbon, Gibraltar, Malaga, Barcelona.

The liner was christened by godmother Kate Middleton (Duchess of Cambridge). The naming ceremony was in Port Southampton England, held on June 16, 2013. Followed the maiden voyage to Iberia.

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 mi (4000 km) which is enough to link NYC with LA.