Royal Princess profile and photo tour,

This week the focus is on Princess Cruises' latest ship, Royal Princess.

Royal Princess is a significant ship. Not only is she the first new ship brought into service by Princess Cruises since 2008 but she is the first new design implemented by Carnival Corporation in several years.

During this interim, competitors Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise Lines have brought out ships that are a radical departure from the past - - Oasis of the Seas, Allure of the Seas, Norwegian Epic and Norwegian Breakaway. Not only were these ships big but they offer a new model of cruising. One in which the guest has quality choices not just about dining but also about entertainment. How would Princess and its parent Carnival Corporation respond.

Royal Princess is a much bigger ship than the rest of the Princess fleet. Indeed, she is the biggest ship in the 100-plus ship Carnival Corporation fleet leaving aside Cunard's Queen Mary 2. At the time of her entry into service, Royal Princess was the ninth largest cruise ship in the world. Thus, she is competitive in size with the new ships launched by Princess' competitors.

She also offers guests more dining options and more entertainment options. However, Princess has been very successful with its existing formula. Therefore, Princess was careful to preserve the feel and style of its existing fleet. It has enhanced rather than abandoned its formula.

Technology underlies many of these enhancements. But an equally important ingredient was space. Princess has used the additional space provided by the great size of the ship to produce visually impressive rooms such as the Piazza but also to ensure that guests do not feel crowded. Passengers frequently have the impression that the ship is not full, even though all of the staterooms are usually occupied.

Beyondships's profile of Royal Princess, with menus, daily programs, information and photos of the ship is at http://beyondships.com/Princess-RP-Profile.html

The multi-page photo tour of the interior and the public spaces of the ship begins at http://beyondships.com/Princess-RP-Tour-1.html

Next, week we will be adding more to our Royal Princess' section including interviews with the captain and the hotel director.

Talking with the Managing Director of P&O Cruises

When I was in England, I had the opportunity to speak with Carol Marlow, the Managing Director of P&O Cruises. Carol came to this post after heading Cunard Line for several years and she kindly agreed to answer some questions about the difference between the two iconic British passenger lines and about some of the challenges facing P&O.

P&O is in the enviable position of being the public’s favorite cruise line in a rapidly growing market. However, the other major cruise lines have realized the potential of the British market and several have entered it in a big way. How does the home team respond?

In order to meet the growing demand for cruise holidays, P&O has grown the capacity of its fleet by adding new ships. However, as a result, the fleet is now composed of ships that differ widely in size, age and style. How does one ensure the qualities that made P&O popular are maintained through this larger and more disparate fleet?

Ms. Marlow’s answers to these questions as well as her thoughts on the new Azura and the upcoming replacement of the Artemis by the Adonia are posted at http://www.beyondships.com/PO-art-Marlow.html

A Royal Gem

Royal Princess is a remarkable gem of a ship. At a little over 30,000 gross tons, she would be considered a small cruise ship. However, she is large enough to have scaled-down versions of many of the trademark Princess features familiar to travelers on the Princess mega-cruise ships. In addition, the ship is tastefully decorated throughout with extensive use of wood paneling and the type of furnishings that one would expect to see in an English country house.

This ship was the last of a nearly-identical series of eight ships built for Renaissance Cruises. Following Renaissance’s bankruptcy in 2002, the ships were scattered and are now favorites of travelers on several cruise lines at the upper end of the market including Azamara and Oceana. Princess has two others in its fleet (Pacific Princess and Tahitian Princess). After a refit, Royal Princess joined her Princess sisters in 2007.

Because of her size, Royal Princess can go where larger ships cannot. Accordingly, Royal Princess does longer than average cruises and includes in her itinerary some ports that are less visited. This tends to attract more mature, experienced travelers.

My profile of Royal Princess can be found at http://beyondships.com/Princess-RP-Profile.html. The in-depth photo tour and commentary starts at http://beyondships.com/Princess-RP-Tour-1.html