She’s big, she’s beautiful and she’s pushing boundaries. As the newest cruise ship in the world to be sailing the seven seas, the shiny new flagship for Princess Cruises is a glittering marvel, writes Mike Yardley.
By any measure, she is a game-changing giant to reset the cruise industry’s compass.
Princess Cruises has launched its next-generation flagship Sun Princess, the first of two planned Sphere-class vessels to enter the Princess fleet. (Star Princess is to be launched next year.) With a capacity for 4300 guests and 1600 crew, and weighing in at 177,000 tonnes, she is a twinkling ocean beauty. During her inaugural season in the Mediterranean, I spent a starry-eyed week aboard the Sun Princess, marvelling over her myriad innovations.
The first surprise was, despite its mega-sized capacity, I did not feel like I was struggling for space amid the teeming thousands. Not even at the buffet. Nor was embarking or disembarking the ship an onerous affair. The passenger flow was slick and smooth, on and off the ship.
If ever there is a floating glasshouse on the high seas, the Sun Princess is it. I have never experienced a cruise ship gloriously clad in so much glass, purposely designed to accentuate the elemental glory of the sea.
Affectionately dubbed the next level
Love Boat, she sports an array of spellbinding architectural flourishes. At the top of the ship, the Dome is an ingenious geodesic, multilevel, glass-enclosed structure, which drew its design inspiration from the hillside terraces of Santorini. The nightly circus performances are exquisite. The hairs on my arms stood on end as a trapeze artist effortlessly soared around the venue, while I happily quaffed on my prosecco.
Then there is the Sphere. Like a giant glass bubble protruding beyond the side of the ship, it is pure "starchitecture", spanning 10 decks mid-ship. The Piazza is the electrifying, vivacious beating heart of the ship, pulsing with an ever-changing roster of activity around the clock. It is strung across three levels, flanked by those spherical windows, while a colossal LED wall ramps up the razzle-dazzle factor.
Beyond the bling, nothing beats recharging at sea by simply drinking in the ocean vistas around you. The Sea View Terrace sets the tone at the front of the ship, while the new Wake View Terrace features an infinity aqua pool and more dreamy views. Across its 21 decks, cutting-edge design features, intuitive technology and classic elegance are all seamlessly interwoven. Sleek panelling adorns the walls alongside interactive LED screens with great way-finding functionality. Being such a tech-savvy ship, the medallion device synonymous with Princess Cruises expedites and personalises your onboard experience.
With a tantalising array of 30 food and beverage venues on board, grazing from this extraordinary collection of culinary experiences, mixology mastery and celebrity collaborations is my idea of discerning indulgence. Starting with the basics, the main restaurant, Horizons Dining Room, has been thoughtfully configured into a triple-decker venue, wrapped in a huge wall of glass, dramatically overlooking the ship’s wake.
The traditional "lido" buffet has been recast as the Eatery, with a lip-smacking array of food stations, catering to all palettes. Yes, the buffet has survived the Covid age, but self-serve gluttony is a gone-burger on the
Sun Princess, in favour of pointing at the glassed-off serving areas, selecting what you would like the whip-smart staff to plate up for you. Interestingly, it has heralded a welcome plunge in daily food waste. It is a pleasingly more mindful buffet. I took a galley tour with food and beverage director Peter Priestly, who remarked that the ship produces an astonishing 25,000 meals a day. All breads are made on board — 6000 rolls a day, just for the main dining room!
But it is the arsenal of specialty dining experiences where Princess has really pushed the boat out. If you are the sort of cruiser who never likes to eat in the same place twice, Sun Princess is destination dining in excelsis, with some epic collaborations.
The Butcher’s Block by Dario is a new meat-focused grill curated by celebrity Tuscan butcher Dario Cecchini. If you have seen Netflix’s
Chef’s Table, you know who he is. This seven-course experience is pure theatre, with each dish featuring a different cut of beef, prepared tableside. There is Makoto Ocean, a collaboration with celebrity chef and sushi master Makoto Okuwa, showcasing his splendid menu of Edomae-style sushi accompanied by sake.
There are two other destinations I found especially enchanting. Umai Teppanyaki is a cracking experience, delivering a fun-with-food interactive experience, as our effusive teppanyaki chef, Romeo Larcello, sliced and diced his way through a spree of dishes, flicking food here and there, and cracking dad jokes which were executed with the same precision as his flashing knives. Beyond the showmanship, I noshed my way through a sizzling feast of treats including black-tiger shrimp, seared scallops and teriyaki chicken, all accompanied with stir-fried Umai vegetables.
But the most mesmerising dining experience would have to be Spellbound by Magic Castle. Created in partnership with the famed Hollywood venue, the exclusive academy for aspiring magicians, Spellbound combines feats of magic with winning mixology. A welcome drink and unlimited cocktails spill forth throughout the evening, crowned with a world-class magic show in an intimate auditorium. The signature cocktails are whimsical, like Houdini’s Chest, which is served in a leather chest, brimming with dry ice, as you open it.
After dining, our group of 30 passed through a nondescript door and entered the escapist world of Spellbound. A "greeter" with a top hat and Victorian attire ushered us into the evocative bar and lounge, where the walls are wondrously furnished with magic-themed artefacts, some paying homage to leading luminaries, like Houdini. Add to that, a piano-playing ghost. Two magicians enthralled us — the first at the bar with some killer card tricks that left us baffled. Then we took our seats in the auditorium where acclaimed British magician Jon Allen wowed us with his close-up magic, intimate cabaret magic. We were all left completely dumbfounded by his captivating tricks and sheer wizardry, which has to be seen to be believed.
Entertainment options are laid on thick. My highlight was Princess Arena, which sports the most technologically advanced theatre design that Princess has ever deployed on any ship. Three different configurations can maximize sight lines in this shapeshifting venue, which seats nearly 1000 guests. It was here that I caught a performance of the refreshed
Fiera! The setting is a late 19th century European fairground, with a brilliantly costumed cast of performers, high-energy dancing and spectacular digital effects.
There is no doubt that the Sun Princess is keen to resonate with a broader, younger audience and more "new to cruise" customers. There is a concerted move to make families with younger children feel more welcome, even if they are still not the target market. Notably, a large chunk of the top deck of is adorned with a family-friendly play zone called Park19. But mercifully, unlike some cruise lines, the Sun Princess is not pretending to ape a thrills-and-spills theme park on its top deck. But this ship is far bigger and more venue-packed than any vessel Princess has launched before.
Accommodations are truly premium, thanks to the greatly improved entry-level layouts and elevated amenities. There are 1500 balcony-included staterooms — more than any Princess ship. I stayed in a Cabana Mini-Suite, featuring a private balcony and cabana which delivers expansive outdoors lounge space. The
Sun Princess is also the first Princess ship to offer a separate suite complex, aimed at the growing number of big-ship-loving vacationers willing to splash the cash for extra pampering. Suites also unlock access to a two-deck-high lounge overlooking the ship’s wake and a sublime outside sun deck, named the Sanctuary.
Consumer expectations for greater sustainability is unleashing a wave of changes to the cruise industry, with an unprecedented focus on energy-efficiency and green technology to minimise its environmental footprint. Walking that talk, the Sun Princess is the first ship in Princess fleet to be powered by liquefied natural gas. Powering over 95% of operations, only a small amount of diesel is deployed for combustion in the pistons. What constantly struck me about this gentle giant, particularly when manoeuvring in and out of port is how silent the ship is, compared to the familiar rumble of diesel-powered engines, let alone the absence of fumes and streak of black smoke billowing from the ship’s funnel.
A behind-the-scenes tour of the ship’s operations lifts the curtain on the litany of technological advances that underpin the vessel’s sustainability credentials. Up in the bridge, I chatted to Captain Paolo Arrigo, who has cultivated quite the following on Instagram (therealoveboatcaptain) after featuring in the recent reality TV show
The Real Love Boat. He is the third generation in his family to work for Princess and from the age of 4 he dreamed of being captain.
He would have to be the most gregarious ship captain I have come across — just another highlight to the superstar experience you can expect aboard a Sun Princess sailing, in the Mediterranean or Caribbean.
www.princess.com
