Princess Cruises Cancels Sun Princess' Inaugural Voyage

[Host Mike]

"Princess Cruises and Italy's Fincantieri shipbuilding company have announced a mutual agreement to delay the delivery of the highly anticipated Sun Princess, resulting in the cancellation of the vessel's inaugural 10-day voyage that had been set to depart from Barcelona, Spain on February 8."

https://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/news/princess-cruises-cancels-sun-princess-inaugural-voyage-following-delivery-postponement/ar-BB1hcV6Y

[Host Mike]

"A spokesperson for Princess Cruises, one of the brands owned by Carnival Corporation, told the travel agent trade Travel Weekly the ship was being delayed due to “unforeseen challenges” at Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri. The postponement Princess said has “regrettably led to the cancellation of the ship's inaugural 10-day voyage, originally set to depart from Barcelona on February 8th.” At this time, the company has only canceled one voyage but has not announced a new target date for delivery."

https://maritime-executive.com/article/princess-cruises-and-fincantieri-delay-sun-princess-two-weeks-before-mv

[Host Mike]

"Guests who were due to be on the cruise are going to receive a full refund of their cruise fare along with any other pre-cruise purchases they made, such as paying off tips, booking WiFi packages or any excursions booked.

The cruise line is also giving guests a 50% future cruise credit that can be used on any Princess cruise, on any ship in the fleet, provided it is booked before 30th November 2024 and is a sailing departing before 31st December 2025.

The cruise line is also offering to pay up to $200 to each passenger to cover changes or cancellation fees related to flights.

Otherwise, guests who have to incur higher flight cancellation fees or who had booked hotels for prior to their cruise will have to absorb the costs themselves, or hope to get a refund from their travel insurance."

https://www.cruisemummy.co.uk/inaugural-sailing-cancelled-at-the-last-minute-loyal-cruise-guests-left-devastated/

[Host Mike]

"The FCC must be booked by Nov. 30, 2024 and sailed by Dec. 31, 2025. Guests also receive up to $200 per person for change fees related to air travel plans.

Princess says it is also protecting travel agent commissions."

https://news.paxeditions.com/news/cruise/princess-postpones-sun-princess-delivery-feb-8-inaugural-voyage-cancelled

[Host Mike]

"The shift in the date of the maiden voyage is understood to be due to unforeseen challenges and delays encountered at the shipyard, where Fincantieri faced unexpected challenges.

The yard is working to resolve the issues and expedite final preparations."

https://travelweekly.co.uk/news/cruise/princess-cancels-sun-princess-inaugural-sailing-after-delivery-delay

Editor: Princess is keeping a very tight lip on the ship's "unforeseen challenges."

[RichC]

That seems fair enough although a little disappointing I suppose.

[obendus]

Both Mike and I experienced this first hand with the Ruby inaugural in 2008, but they advanced the sailing to one week earlier. Still was a good cruise, but yeah..  all of the thrill of being on an inaugural was dampened.

[Host Mike]

"However, Fred Olsen Travel retail director Paul Hardwick warned the cancellation had caused “concern” among agents as Princess Cruises had not provided any updates on whether further departures would be affected.

He said there was generally “more worry now” about cancellations than in the past, as a number of cruise lines had been forced to delay inaugural sailings in recent years, which he warned could negatively impact the reputation of the industry."

https://travelweekly.co.uk/news/travel-agents/trade-praises-princess-cruises-for-handling-of-sun-princess-delay