Princess to Add 19th Ship to Fleet

[Cruise Junky]

Less? I have not seen any on the Regal. Maybe I missed it?

 

 

I thought I saw some pictures and comments quite early on but it was minuscule compared to Royal

[Colo Cruiser]

I thought I saw some pictures and comments quite early on but it was minuscule compared to Royal

 

And there really have not been any from the Royal either for that matter.

Not like it was in the beginning.

[seacruise9]

Having sailed on the Royal and sailing again in just over a month, I'd say that overall, the Royal felt far less crowded than the Grand-class ships I've been on. Once you've experienced the Horizon Court and Horizon Bistro, it's really, really hard to go back to the other Princess ships as they are so far much better.

 

Hi,

 

I agree with Pam. I have cruised aboard both the Royal Princess (maiden voyage) and the Regal Princess and greatly enjoyed this class of ship. Also, I am booked on the Royal Princess for another cruise next year. The Piazza on these ships is stunning. I think it is good news that they will be building another ship in this class. However, it would be nice if they convert the cental staircase to passenger use on the new ship.

 

Chuck

[zalusky]

I haven't done Regal or Royal yet but I did the Allure of the Seas last summer and was very impressed by many things.

 

It did not feel crowded. Embarkation was amazingly fast.

Great choice in restaurants and better food.

More and varied entertainment.

 

The downsides were that the buffet was closed at night and the main smoking lounge was smack in the middle of the interior promenade.

 

Hopefully Princess has those issues fixed! I just sailed on the Coral to Alaska and one of the big complaints is the lack of tech. On the Allure I could walk to an interactive plasma panel and see menus, maps, etc.

 

The Royal/Regal/... will probably be my next Princess choice.

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

That is good news ..

[Mikeyto]

Having sailed on the Royal and sailing again in just over a month, I'd say that overall, the Royal felt far less crowded than the Grand-class ships I've been on. Once you've experienced the Horizon Court and Horizon Bistro, it's really, really hard to go back to the other Princess ships as they are so far much better.

 

I have to agree Pam. I did the Maiden Caribbean on Royal and was on Ruby in April. Although a beautiful ship, I felt more confined on the Ruby. You really feel the difference with the Horizon Court/Bistro and the Atrium. I do hope they will put the Explorers Lounge back on and get rid of Princess Live.

[Vexorg]

I haven't been on either the Royal or Regal yet (I wanted to do a BVE on the Royal the day before my cruise last December but it was already sold out when I called to book it) but I definitely want to try one at some point. Some ships definitely feel more crowded than others (I'd say that of the ones I've been on, the Sapphire Princess was probably my favorite in terms of passenger space ratio.) I think in terms of what another Royal-class ship will look like, it'll be interesting to see how Brittania turns out. Based on the renderings it looks like they've changed quite a bit from the Royal and Regal, and the reaction to that one here seemed quite positive.

[lovevacadays]

It sounds to me like the Royal and Regal have been successful enough for Princess. Otherwise, I wouldn't think they would order a new build that sounds like it will be close in design to them.

 

I haven't sailed this class of ship but would like to. I'm thinking maybe the Caribbean next year.

 

It will be interesting to see what changes they will make and what the itineraries will be.

[Coral]

Having sailed on the Royal and sailing again in just over a month, I'd say that overall, the Royal felt far less crowded than the Grand-class ships I've been on. Once you've experienced the Horizon Court and Horizon Bistro, it's really, really hard to go back to the other Princess ships as they are so far much better.

 

Since I avoid buffets (haven't really met one that I like) - this would not be a reason to win me over to this class of ship.

Edited July 31, 2014 by Coral

[Love.II.Cruise]

How disappointing that it's going to be modelled after Regal and Royal. Another one to avoid unless they stop making smurf balconies

 

Agreed. If it has larger balconies, we will consider. Otherwise, there are many other options out there for larger balconies with Princess and other lines. It is a priority for us.

Edited July 31, 2014 by Love.II.Cruise

[shredie]

Since I haven't set foot on the Royal or the Regal, I guess I can't comment. Just in general, though, I like a smaller ship more than a larger one. I haven't been tempted to jump on the big girls yet.

[Loonbeam]

When it comes down to it, while people dislike various aspects of the Royal or Regal, there are only 2 items that pretty much have universal disdain..

 

Center stairs and elevator size.

 

Pool size and count is a close second.

 

They fix those, its a net win.

 

Based on the industry you are not going to see larger balconies, with a 2K ton size increase there will not be a big change to hull design so the only way would be smaller cabins as well.

 

2000 extra tons however could easily allow the structural changes for center stairs and maybe a larger pool.

 

Promenade? Toss up.

[Cruise Junky]

When it comes down to it, while people dislike various aspects of the Royal or Regal, there are only 2 items that pretty much have universal disdain..

 

Center stairs and elevator size.

 

Pool size and count is a close second.

 

They fix those, its a net win.

 

Based on the industry you are not going to see larger balconies, with a 2K ton size increase there will not be a big change to hull design so the only way would be smaller cabins as well.

 

2000 extra tons however could easily allow the structural changes for center stairs and maybe a larger pool.

 

Promenade? Toss up.

 

That tonnage difference is debatable. Wiki has Regal at 142,229. Not much of anything will take that go 143,000. Maybe a staircase?

 

Good job we fell for a celebrity's S class, their oversized balconies are awesome and sadly I'm not seeing a future with Princess's new builds

Edited July 31, 2014 by Cruise Junky

[Love.II.Cruise]

When it comes down to it, while people dislike various aspects of the Royal or Regal, there are only 2 items that pretty much have universal disdain..

 

Center stairs and elevator size.

 

Pool size and count is a close second.

 

They fix those, its a net win.

 

Based on the industry you are not going to see larger balconies, with a 2K ton size increase there will not be a big change to hull design so the only way would be smaller cabins as well.

 

2000 extra tons however could easily allow the structural changes for center stairs and maybe a larger pool.

 

Promenade? Toss up.

 

If you mean Princess, maybe so, but there are other cruise lines that are not yet reducing their balcony sizes to a ridiculous amount like they did on the 2 new Princess ships. Those will be the ones we sail on even if they are at a slightly higher cost.

[whatcruiseisnext]

Having sailed on the Royal and sailing again in just over a month, I'd say that overall, the Royal felt far less crowded than the Grand-class ships I've been on. Once you've experienced the Horizon Court and Horizon Bistro, it's really, really hard to go back to the other Princess ships as they are so far much better.

 

Pam....I totally agree with you. We have sailed on three different Princess ships since sailing on the Royal in June 2013 and we have said the same that you did. We really missed the Royal features. All the positives about the ship far outweigh the negatives. Our next three cruises are on the Royal....A 10 day repo in October from New York ending in Fort Lauderdale, a 10 day Caribbean in February and the British Isles in June. We are so looking forward to being back on the ship.

[rdsqrl]

If it won't have oceanview cabins, I'm no more interested in this new ship than I am in her immediate predecessors. I couldn't possibly care less about a big buffet or a stunning piazza; those are the areas of the ship in which I spend very little, if any, time. A cabin with natural light, an expansive selection of pool (in-pool and pool-side) real estate, and a sheltered promenade deck to make me feel like I'm on a real ship: those are my priorities (and a martini bar, but I'm confident Crooner's isn't going anywhere!). If it's on the same platform as the R&R twins, it looks like this new-build isn't going to tick any of those boxes for me, but we'll see . . .

[OzKiwiJJ]

But I like the old ships!:p

 

Don't worry, Ethel5, they'll won't retire them, they'll just send them down to Australia. :rolleyes:

[Colo Cruiser]

Don't worry, Ethel5, they'll won't retire them, they'll just send them down to Australia. :rolleyes:

 

I forgot about that aspect.

[remydiva]

Yes.This was the part I took away from the release: The as-yet unnamed 143,000-ton vessel, which will be built at an all-in cost of approximately 600 million euros, will carry 3,560 passengers, and feature the successful design platform introduced by sister ships Royal Princess in 2013 and Regal Princess which entered service this past May.

 

I would guess no OV rooms, very small balconies, and no full promenade.

 

Agree with both posters....who says that the Royal and Regal designs are " successful" .

 

Clearly Princess doesn't read the CC comments about the smurf balconies, no OV, no aft pool to speak of and the non promenade promenade.

 

Just leaves more room for me on my favs the Ruby, Emerald, island and Coral. You can fight over the new ones without me!

[Cruise Junky]

If it won't have oceanview cabins, I'm no more interested in this new ship than I am in her immediate predecessors. I couldn't possibly care less about a big buffet or a stunning piazza; those are the areas of the ship in which I spend very little, if any, time. A cabin with natural light, an expansive selection of pool (in-pool and pool-side) real estate, and a sheltered promenade deck to make me feel like I'm on a real ship: those are my priorities (and a martini bar, but I'm confident Crooner's isn't going anywhere!). If it's on the same platform as the R&R twins, it looks like this new-build isn't going to tick any of those boxes for me, but we'll see . . .

 

I've seen nothing on OV cabins except 80% of cabins have balconies which is exactly what R&R have so unless they plan on changing some inside cabins to OV, it looks like they're missing :(

 

I'd like to know what Jan is smoking in thinking they're successful. Her bar must be set pretty damn low

[Kenosha Cruiser]

I'm happy to see Princess build a third ship in this class. I was on the Royal last November and loved it. Can't wait to board the Regal Princess this November. You can't beat the enlarged piazza, everything was top notch. These class ships are now my favorite in the Princess fleet.

[Loonbeam]

Very few new builds have significant size balconies for the majority of cabins, regardless of lines. Some may still be larger but not to the size they were on build 10 years ago.

 

If you mean Princess, maybe so, but there are other cruise lines that are not yet reducing their balcony sizes to a ridiculous amount like they did on the 2 new Princess ships. Those will be the ones we sail on even if they are at a slightly higher cost.

[Loonbeam]

As far as I can tell, the ships are meeting their revenue goals. That's successful as far as the line goes.

 

Princess can and does read CC. But its bookings that control the line, and clearly the class is meeting profit expectations enough to invest eight hundred million dollars or so.

 

Agree with both posters....who says that the Royal and Regal designs are " successful" .

 

Clearly Princess doesn't read the CC comments about the smurf balconies, no OV, no aft pool to speak of and the non promenade promenade.

 

Just leaves more room for me on my favs the Ruby, Emerald, island and Coral. You can fight over the new ones without me!

[Woobstr112G]

http://www.princess.com/news/press_releases/2014/07/Princess-Cruises-to-Add-New-Ship-to-Fleet.html#.U9mua9m9LCQ

 

Say it ain't so, another Royal class ship for Princess.....:eek::eek::eek:

 

Bob

[Cruise Junky]

Very few new builds have significant size balconies for the majority of cabins, regardless of lines. Some may still be larger but not to the size they were on build 10 years ago.

 

Did we ever get an accurate sqft count from Royal? 39sq ft comes to mind but I'm not sure if that's right. Quantum and Anthem start at 55 sq ft with lots of options for larger balconies on the bump outs

 

Edit. Found it on the Princess site, 41sqft. Glad RCL is still making them bigger.

Edited July 31, 2014 by Cruise Junky