I can remember way back when Princess Cruises operated a tiny fleet of Love Boats. My husband and I sailed on them all — Island Princess, Pacific Princess and Princess Italia — and they were dreamy getaways for an idlyllic escape.
Since then the fleet has increased with bigger, innovative and even dreamier vessels. The newest, now under construction, will be Star Princess, the second Sphere Class cruise ship. It will begin an inaugural season of Mediterranean voyages when it debuts in August 2025.
Tickets go on sale June 1 for its Europe 2025 program.
Star Princess joins Sun Princess as the largest ships ever built for Princess at 175,500 gross tons and carrying 4,300 guests at double occupancy. The new ship is built on a platform that is distinctly different and unique to Princess, designed to simultaneously embrace the Princess heritage while celebrating the romance of the sea by offering more dynamic, outward views.
Bigger than all the rest
The Star is 20 percent larger than any of the line’s existing ships. At the same time, the ship's design has been modeled to retain Princess's intimacy. It will boast groundbreaking spaces such as the Dome, a transformational entertainment venue inspired by the terraces of Santorini. Also featured will be a next-level Piazza with a large glass sphere and Princess Arena, a configurable, technologically advanced main theater
Among other highlights is a majestic dining room situated aft of the ship that offers memorable views of the ship's wake. Other distinctive characteristics include new food and beverage concepts, an expanded casino, a two-story Lotus Spa and headline entertainment by Cirque Éloize.
Roomier accommodations
The cramped quarters of past ships are now a distant memory. Star is a prime example of the modern cruise ship with more spacious staterooms and suites.
Star will be the second in the Princess fleet to be powered by LNG fuel technology and also is being built with the most advanced sustainable innovations available.Star Princess makes its debut on Aug. 4, 2025 with a nine-day inaugural Italy & Greece round-trip voyage from Rome (Civitavecchia). It will make port stops at Corfu, Kotor, Mykonos, Santorini and Naples (for Capri and Pompeii), followed by a variety of 9- and 10-day cruises sailing from Rome, Athens or Trieste (Venice) that visit idyllic coastal ports. The ship, with a length of 1,133 feet, will have 21 decks.
A little backstory
Princess’ first ship named Star Princess initially launched in 1988 as Sitmar Fair Majesty (and I was on it). With the merger of Sitmar Cruises into Princess, she then entered service as Star Princess in 1989, and was christened by legendary actress and humanitarian Audrey Hepburn (I was there for that, too). Hey I've been writing about cruises for decades and have made more than 400 sailings. The second Star Princess launched in 2002, as the third Grand-Class vessel playing an instrumental role in the evolution of the brand with popular offerings like Anytime Dining, the only dining program in the industry at the time to give guests freedom to dine where, when and with whom they wish.
Ready to book?
Interested in a cruise on Star Princess? Contact a Cruiseable travel consultant in our business department at 1-866-3773 or email [email protected].
