Princess Cruises and Fincantieri Postpone Sun Princess Delivery by Two Weeks

Princess Cruises and Fincantieri have agreed to delay the delivery of the new cruise ship Sun Princess just two weeks before its scheduled maiden voyage. The reason for the postponement was not explained, and a new target delivery date has not been announced. The ship’s inaugural 10-day voyage, originally set to depart from Barcelona on February 8th, has been canceled due to the delay.

The new cruise ship will be approximately 175,500 gross tons with accommodations for 4,300 passengers and 1,150 crew. It is part of a two-ship order placed by Carnival Corporation in July 2018, as the largest ships for the Princess brand. The sister ships are each about 20 percent larger than the previous class of cruise ships built by Fincantieri for Princess.

The delays in the ship’s delivery are not uncommon, often due to last-minute changes or delays in completing the fitting out of the vessels. Many loyal repeaters to Princess are expressing their disappointment, especially due to the short notice before the maiden voyage, as the company had begun accepting bookings for the Sun Princess in April 2023. The keel for her sister ship named Star Princess was laid down at the Monfalcone shipyard on December 11, and she is due to enter service in August 2025 in the Mediterranean before repositioning to the Caribbean.

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