Spring Has Come...and Gone - Where's the Lavazza Coffee? Where's the SMiZE Ice Cream?

[startedwithamouse]

Princess Cruises Announces Lavazza as Official Coffee Partner

New Partnership Brings Premium Italian Coffee Brand Lavazza to all Princess ships

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SANTA CLARITA, Calif. (March 23, 2023) – Princess Cruises, the world’s most iconic cruise brand, today announced that world-renowned coffee brand, Lavazza, is now the line’s Official Coffee Partner. For more than 120 years, Lavazza has expressed the essence of real Italian coffee, with a passion for superior quality.

“Princess guests love their coffee as the morning ritual at the International Café in the legendary Princess Piazza.  With a relentless focus on what’s important to our guests, we are upgrading the experience and magnifying our Italian heritage with Lavazza,” said John Padgett, president of Princess Cruises. “Our Lavazza partnership gives our guests yet another thing to love about a Princess vacation.”

Lavazza offerings will begin rolling out on Princess ships throughout the spring and guests can expect to enjoy the brand’s array of hot coffee options and convenient Ready-to-Drink cans. The relationship will extend beyond offering Lavazza products and services on board to include unique coffee-inspired dinners and recipes collectively designed by Lavazza experts and Princess executive chefs, educational sessions, tastings, food pairings and samplings. The two brands will also collaborate on upcoming marketing campaigns, promotions and exclusive events.

"We have been inspired by the way Princess Cruises creates memorable experiences for their guests and feel a strong synergy between both brands in our commitment to quality, innovation and entertainment," shared Camille Vareille, vice president - head of marketing Americas at Lavazza Group. "We are excited to come onboard to offer an elevated coffee program and showcase our premium products to a broader, international audience."

Additional information about Princess Cruises is available through a professional travel advisor, by calling 1-800-PRINCESS (1-800-774-6237) or by visiting the company’s website at www.princess.com. For more information on Lavazza, please visit www.lavazzausa.com or @LavazzaUSA.

 

 

Life’s Sweetest Reward! SMiZE Cream, New Super-Premium Ice Cream Created by Iconic Supermodel Tyra Banks Soon Available Fleetwide on Princess Cruises

Delicious Frozen Treats, Each with an Edible Surprise in Every Cup, Available Via OceanNow!

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SANTA CLARITA, Calif. (Nov. 6, 2022) - Princess guests are in for a treat…a frozen treat. SMiZE Cream, the super-premium ice cream with an edible surprise in every cup from iconic supermodel and super businesswoman Tyra Banks, will soon be available on all 15 Princess MedallionClass ships.

Launched by Banks in 2020 as a fun and innovative ice cream brand that features unique flavors and one-of-a-kind packaging, SMiZE Cream is available in luxe-meet-fun flavors like: "Brownies, I Love You", "Caramel Cookie Queen", "Strawberry BirthYAY! Cake", "Purple Cookie Mon-Star & Me", "Salted Caramel King" and "The Best Vanilla I Ever Had." And strategically located at the bottom of every luxurious serving, is the SMiZE SURPRiZE, a yummy reward after some serious digging.  It’s a fun and delicious discovery that appeals to the kid in all of us!

Each ice cream flavor is served in limited-edition, individually packaged servings, complete with a unique augmented reality (AR) activation per ice cream flavor that happens right on the cup.

“When I set out to create an ice cream company, I had big dreams, but I’ll admit that SMiZE Cream being able to be enjoyed at sea aboard Princess Cruises truly exceeds my dreams,” said Banks. “Our ice cream won’t just be on one cruise - it will be on the entire fleet, so my team and I are super pumped! As an entrepreneur, innovation and going above and beyond to delight customers is everything to me, so the synergies with Princess’ stance on innovation and premium experiences is the perfect match. I can’t wait for Princess Cruise passengers to delight in luxe, fun, creamy and dreamy SMiZE Cream!”

Starting in mid-March, guests on Princess ships will be able to order SMiZE cups via the OceanNow delivery on demand experience.

“We’re thrilled to be working with a world-renowned personality like Tyra Banks to offer SMiZE Cream across our fleet -- and there’s no doubt our guests are going to absolutely love this indulgent super-premium treat,” said John Padgett, president of Princess Cruises. “There’s nothing sweeter knowing that with our exclusive OceanNow anywhere/anytime delivery our guests will never have to wait in line for their favorite SMiZE Cream flavors.”

[Steelers36]

😄

[Teechur]

No doubt the PCL bean counters weighed the amount of buzz created by these announcements and decided they aren't cost effective. Especially if the items were to be included in the Plus or Premier packages.

[jwattle]

There were reports of Lavazza on at least one ship recently.🍾

[sunviking90]

They were selling SMiZE ice cream on the Crown Princess at Coffee and Cones (next to Slice Pizza). 

[HaveDogWillTravel]

I saw that smize ice cream on the ap for room service on the emerald July 4th sailing. I did not order it 

[cr8tiv1]

6 minutes ago, sunviking90 said:

They were selling SMiZE ice cream on the Crown Princess at Coffee and Cones (next to Slice Pizza). 

 

$$$$$ ?????

Edited July 16, 2023 by cr8tiv1

[startedwithamouse]

6 minutes ago, sunviking90 said:

They were selling SMiZE ice cream on the Crown Princess at Coffee and Cones (next to Slice Pizza). 

That's good news!  We're excited to try it - did you happen to get a photo of flavours or prices?

 

Edited July 16, 2023 by startedwithamouse

[startedwithamouse]

4 minutes ago, HaveDogWillTravel said:

I saw that smize ice cream on the ap for room service on the emerald July 4th sailing. I did not order it 

Did you happen to take a screenshot of flavours and pricing?

[startedwithamouse]

1 minute ago, cr8tiv1 said:

 

$$$$$ ?????

I want to know also the cost and flavours!

[startedwithamouse]

18 minutes ago, jwattle said:

There were reports of Lavazza on at least one ship recently.🍾

Which one and were there cans for sale?

[sunviking90]

3 minutes ago, startedwithamouse said:

That's good news!  We're excited to try it - did you happen to get a photo of flavours or prices?

 

Sorry, I wasn’t interested so I didn’t notice. I assumed it was included in the premium desserts with the plus package, but we don’t get the plus.

[Coral]

27 minutes ago, sunviking90 said:

They were selling SMiZE ice cream on the Crown Princess at Coffee and Cones (next to Slice Pizza). 

Are you referring to this or something that actually says SMiZE? I know when I sailed, they only had the premium desserts and not Smize.

 

[sunviking90]

Just now, Coral said:

Are you referring to this or something that actually says SMiZE? I know when I sailed, they only had the premium desserts and not Smize.

 

I think it was a separate sign. I definitely saw it and remembered reading about it here.

[Coral]

9 minutes ago, sunviking90 said:

I think it was a separate sign. I definitely saw it and remembered reading about it here.

Got it. I think there was some confusion in the beginning if this was Smize or not. Sounds like it has finally hit ships.

[wallyj]

38 minutes ago, startedwithamouse said:

Which one and were there cans for sale?

@startedwithamouse, I am just off 14 day Alaska on the Sapphire. I am not a coffee drinker, so I do not know what was available at the IC, but in the buffet, the front drinks stations had 2 huge Lavazza branded dispensers(one for reg and one for decaf) that look like big drip coffee machines. A large funnel like piece can be attached at the top, which I assume has grounds, when the dispenser needs to be refilled. I witnessed the refilling one afternoon. Crew member will turn the dispenser with the spigot covered, so it should be obvious it is being refilled with the funnel like object in place at the top and coffee now flowing down into the dispenser.

 

The back buffet drinks stations still have not been upgraded for the Lavazza dispensers and you will get the ‘syrup’ coffee from those stations.

 

I did not notice anyone with Lavazza ‘can’ products.

 

Assume on Royal class ships the coffee machines in the Buffett drinks station will eventually have ‘Lavazza’ beans?

[pompeii]

If anyone is currently on the Royal, can you report if there are Lavazza dispensers in the buffet?  And if you're a coffee drinker, can you tell us if it's any good??  I'm sailing in September and would love to know if there will be decent free coffee.  I don't get plus or premier so IC coffee is $$$.

[SCX22]

The Smize ice cream was available on the Majestic this past June.  It was only available for order though the room service menu.  It was $6 for a personal size, single serving cup that was prepackaged.  The size was similar to a mini Haagen Daaz cup or the size of ice cream cup that is served in economy by some airlines on international flights.  Definitely way less than quart in size and not scooped.

 

I noticed the Smize ice cream container as trash left outside in the hall on someone's room service dirty dishes.

[JF - retired RRT]

4 minutes ago, SCX22 said:

The Smize ice cream was available on the Majestic this past June.  It was only available for order though the room service menu.  It was $6 for a personal size, single serving cup that was prepackaged.  The size was similar to a mini Haagen Daaz cup or the size of ice cream cup that is served in economy by some airlines on international flights.  Definitely way less than quart in size and not scooped.

 

I noticed the Smize ice cream container as trash left outside in the hall on someone's room service dirty dishes.

You could buy a half gallon of ice cream for that. No thanks.

[PacnGoNow]

3 hours ago, startedwithamouse said:

Which one and were there cans for sale?

It was the Sapphire, just recently in the forward Buffet, not the aft.

 

Yeah!  I hope the MDR also.

[startedwithamouse]

2 hours ago, JF - retired RRT said:

You could buy a half gallon of ice cream for that. No thanks.

 

One could say that about any alcoholic beverage or soda or specialty coffee they drink on a cruise ship.

 

Edited July 16, 2023 by startedwithamouse

[startedwithamouse]

1 hour ago, SCX22 said:

The Smize ice cream was available on the Majestic this past June.  It was only available for order though the room service menu.  It was $6 for a personal size, single serving cup that was prepackaged.  The size was similar to a mini Haagen Daaz cup or the size of ice cream cup that is served in economy by some airlines on international flights.  Definitely way less than quart in size and not scooped.

 

I noticed the Smize ice cream container as trash left outside in the hall on someone's room service dirty dishes.

Thank you!  We'll look for it. 

 

Salt & Straw is the same price.

[SCX22]

2 hours ago, pompeii said:

If anyone is currently on the Royal, can you report if there are Lavazza dispensers in the buffet?  And if you're a coffee drinker, can you tell us if it's any good??  I'm sailing in September and would love to know if there will be decent free coffee.  I don't get plus or premier so IC coffee is $$$.

 

Even with Lavazza, I doubt the brewed coffee in the buffet will improve on Royal Class ships.  The problem is the WMF coffee machine that is used.  It makes brewed coffee, but there is no paper filter, the coffee is more like an Americano or French Press.  It makes is easier because the buffet servers don't have to worry about replacing the paper filter and dumping the spent grounds every time coffee needs to be brewed.  Pretty harmless, one would think, but the coffee is usually pretty bad.  I'm guessing the filter is metal mesh and it's constantly clogging and causing machine malfunctions.  Sometimes not all the grounds are caught and you will see them at the bottom of your cup.  The coffee produced is sometimes so weak that it looks like tea when dispensed into a white mug.  They are also constantly broken.  I was on and off the Royal several times late last year and early this year, and one of the port side coffee machines was out of service the entire time, never fixed in the months that I saw it.

[Camelia-]

32 minutes ago, SCX22 said:

 

Even with Lavazza, I doubt the brewed coffee in the buffet will improve on Royal Class ships.  The problem is the WMF coffee machine that is used.  It makes brewed coffee, but there is no paper filter, the coffee is more like an Americano or French Press.  It makes is easier because the buffet servers don't have to worry about replacing the paper filter and dumping the spent grounds every time coffee needs to be brewed.  Pretty harmless, one would think, but the coffee is usually pretty bad.  I'm guessing the filter is metal mesh and it's constantly clogging and causing machine malfunctions.  Sometimes not all the grounds are caught and you will see them at the bottom of your cup.  The coffee produced is sometimes so weak that it looks like tea when dispensed into a white mug.  They are also constantly broken.  I was on and off the Royal several times late last year and early this year, and one of the port side coffee machines was out of service the entire time, never fixed in the months that I saw it.

Yes I was on the Royal in May and this was my experience too…the coffee was tasteless..just coloured water really …quite disappointing.

[cruzsnooze]

I dislike Lavazza coffee so I hope there are other options. I drink a lot of coffee, plain Yuban is my speed.