Regal Princess to depart fleet

[jsea]

We knew it was only a matter of time...

 

According to Seatrade Insider Regal Princess will be heading to Ocean Village to sail alongside the former Star Princess.

 

No specifics other than saying this will happen next year.

 

Go to http://www.cruise-community.com/ to register for Seatrade Insider. I would post the article but it's expressly forbidden and I don't want to get anyone in any trouble.

[bdjam]

I just threw up. :eek: We can only hope it's a nasty rumor...she was supposed to join Crown Princess 1 when it went to A'Rosa and that didn't happen...

[Corinne Marie]

Dear bdjam,

 

I just sailed on the Sun Princess and ran into a friend of yours. It is Brett Sibourne, assistant cruise director on that ship currently. He told me to say hello to you on these boards. He is a great guy and we had a lot of fun partying with him and some other crew staff in the evening.

 

Best regards,

 

Corinne

[Druke I]

We shall see.

 

She was scheduled to leave the fleet at least twice before - and both times the transfer was cancelled.

[swooldri]

Registered, but can't find the artical. Help, Steve

[jsea]

Registered, but can't find the artical. Help, Steve

Weird. Maybe Carnival already changed its mind as the article has mysteriously vanished.

 

I guess since it doesn't exist any more I can post it:

 

Princess ship to transfer to Ocean Village

5/4/2005

Ocean Village is set to double in size next year with the transfer of Regal Princess from the Princess Cruises fleet. Sailing alongside the original Ocean Village ship (P&O Cruises’ former Arcadia), she will extend the reach of the informal holiday brand in the Mediterranean and Caribbean.

The 70,000gt Regal Princess, built in 1991, will carry 1,690 passengers - 7% more than Ocean Village. Whilst similar in layout to the first ship, with 184 balconies cabins she has three times as many as Ocean Village. Further enhancements are planned before the new ship enters service under a new name in November 2006.

 

’Ocean Village has been shaking up the traditional cruise market since launching its first ship less than two years ago,' said managing director Peter Shanks. 'With the arrival of our second ship, the brand will hit critical mass as the informal cruise holiday of choice.’ He reports the line has taken over 150,000 bookings, nearly 60% of them from first time cruisers.

 

Targeted at the British market, Ocean Village offers two alternating one week fly-cruises, which can be combined to make a two week cruise holiday, in the Mediterranean in the summer (based from Palma Majorca), and in the Caribbean in the winter (based from Barbados). Stay and cruise options feature a one week hotel stay in Majorca or Barbados followed by a second week on board.

[LARGIN]

Well that sucks if this is true... :mad:

[mii]

What a shame. I have not sailed the Regal but did her sister ship the Crown. Boy that sure does it for the older ships doesn't it. Too bad. They were elegant ladies.

 

Marilyn

[spongerob]

It makes me wonder if Pacific and Tahitian Princess are also up for sale.

[jsea]

It makes me wonder if Pacific and Tahitian Princess are also up for sale.

From an industry source on another board:

 

There’s a lot of speculation as to where they will go, the only certainty seems to be they won’t stay with Princess beyond 2006.

 

Take it for what it's worth.

[spongerob]

No surprise to me. Thanks, Jsea.

[Pam in CA]

Oh, no!!! The Royal, now the Regal. Does this mean no more "exotics"? I can't imagine the Grand-class+ ships on the Amazon or at the other ports. I guess it's all about the Caribbean or where thousands want to go at one time. Ugh!!!! Double-ugh!

[Druke I]

Rumors, as always, are interesting.

 

One rumor has the Pacific Princess scheduled for Princess' "Exotics", as she can get into many ports that the Grand class have to skip. She can also transit the Kiel Canal, which the Grand class certainly cannot get into.

 

I had even heard speculation that Pacific Princess might be transferred to HAL, to replace Prinsendam. I don't think that too likely, but you never know.

[gopher's girl]

Maybe we can all pool our money and buy the Regal or the Tahitian so we can keep cruising!!

[CL-JW]

With the Dawn going to Australia and now the Regal being transferred out, I wonder which, if any, ship(s) will do the SF round-trips to Alaska & the Mexican Riviera.

 

I'm hoping for the Sapphire or Diamond personally.

 

Any guesses?

[mii]

With the Dawn going to Australia and now the Regal being transferred out, I wonder which, if any, ship(s) will do the SF round-trips to Alaska & the Mexican Riviera.

 

I'm hoping for the Sapphire or Diamond personally.

 

Any guesses?

 

I have been wondering the same thing. When the news first came out about two or three weeks ago that was the first thing that entered my head considering I live about 90 miles e. of S.F. and have sailed many times out of S.F. for Mex. Riv or Alaska. I also would like to know. Your guess of the Sapphire or Diamond might be it. I guess we will find out soon enough.

 

Marilyn

[SaylorGirl]

Oh, Please say it AIN'T so!!!

[calikak]

My guess is that the (hopefully not really named) California Princess will sail out of SF full time, which is why that name is floating around. Kind of like the Crown Princess being based out of NY. Or, maybe the Dawn will be based out of SF during the Alaska season, then repo down to Austrailia for their season?

 

I'll be sad to see the Regal go, since that's the ship I got engaged on! :(

[CL-JW]

Maybe San Francisco will have two ships . . .:)

 

Right now we have both the Regal & Dawn (which we're taking in October to Mexico!!!). So it would make sense (to me) to have one ship for Alaska and another for Mexico.

 

There is definitely a market in this area to fill ships based in San Francisco on a full time basis.

[calikak]

I figure since the (ugh) California Princess will be too big to sail through the Panama Canal, it would make sense to base it out of one port on the west coast full-time, and if it's going to do Alaska sailings, then SF is a natural city to base it out of year-round. Since the California Princess would be a high-capacity ship, I bet they figure it could replace the Regal and Dawn, since their combined capacity is still less than the California's would be. Of course, I could be totally wrong about all this, it's just a guess based on what makes sense to me. And it still doesn't explain what the Dawn would be doing when it's not on loan to P&O Australia. Maybe summer Hawaii runs from SFO? Or just another ship going to Alaska? Or, if the get rid of the Tahitian, maybe it does the Tahiti sailings?

 

Being in Seattle, I'd love it if they had a ship based out of here year-round, but I doubt there's much of a market for people flying up here for a cruise in rainy November. :)

[Ethel5]

I just threw up. :eek: We can only hope it's a nasty rumor...she was supposed to join Crown Princess 1 when it went to A'Rosa and that didn't happen...

 

Make room in the vomitorium-there are more of us to follow!:(

[Coral]

jsea - why can't you post any good news :(

 

I am sad that I probably won't have the opportunity to experience the Regal.

[swooldri]

This is all speculation!

[jnc411]

Hi all, we just completed a 15 Panama canal trip on the Regal, I posted a small review on another thread. Any way to get back to this thread. My DH was talking to a couple crew members and he got the impression that the Regal would not be with the Princess fleet much longer. Just by some of the comments made. Nothing definite or dates were mentioned , just in general conversation. So reading this thread did not surprise me a whole lot. We liked the overall style of the Regal and size as well, the ship we sailed on before the Regal was the Sapphire, whole different ballgame, we like them both, each has their own charm. Any way thats my 2 cents. :)

Cori

[bdjam]

Dear bdjam,

 

I just sailed on the Sun Princess and ran into a friend of yours. It is Brett Sibourne, assistant cruise director on that ship currently. He told me to say hello to you on these boards. He is a great guy and we had a lot of fun partying with him and some other crew staff in the evening.

 

Best regards,

 

Corinne

Hey Corinne, thanks for the message. You’d think Mr. Siborne could email me once in a while! :rolleyes: :D I know he's a busy guy and I'm glad you got to meet him. He's a special person, that's for sure. If it wasn't for him, I'd not have been as hooked on Princess as I am...was. I actually met Brett on Regal Princess in 1999.

My DH was talking to a couple crew members and he got the impression that the Regal would not be with the Princess fleet much longer.

It’s interesting that when I was on Regal Princess in August of last year, the plans were in the works for the upgrading of the ship – major changes that would have put her in line with Crown Princess 1 after her make-over, not Star Princess 1 after she became Ocean Village. Of course those changes never happened, so it makes you wonder what’s up.

 

All I can say is the Captain and Future Cruise Sales consultant on Pacific Princess in August 2003 both deserve a kick in the pa-tootie. Both were very serious when telling me how Carnival Corporation and Princess understood the need for the smaller ships in the fleet and would be holding on to them indefinitely. While I think the Grand Class ships brilliant in their own way, I don't want to sail with more than 2000 of my closest friends on Wal-Mart Princess. I hope for the cruise line's sake, the short term gains make up for the long term losses this kind of action might bring about.

 

HAL, here I come…