Princess Cruises

Our take

Princess Cruises operates 16 ships and is the destination cruise line of the major mass-market brands — its strongest itineraries are Alaska (where it operates its own land-tour rail and lodge product) and the Mexican Riviera, with a credible Mediterranean and Asia presence. The onboard experience is calmer than Royal Caribbean or Carnival, with a traditional main-dining-room program, the MedallionClass wearable that streamlines on-ship logistics, and an audience that skews 50+. The modern fleet is the Royal-class — Royal Princess (2013), Regal Princess (2014), Majestic Princess (2017), Sky Princess (2019), Enchanted Princess (2020), Discovery Princess (2022) — all 3,560-guest sister ships sharing a deck plan, the cantilevered SeaWalk overhanging the starboard rail, and the Piazza atrium amidships. Sun Princess (2024) and Star Princess (2025) inaugurate the larger Sphere-class — 4,300 guests, a glass-domed Park venue, and a redesigned Piazza with proper seating. The older Grand-class hulls (Grand Princess, Coral Princess, Island Princess) anchor longer destination itineraries — Panama Canal, South America, world-cruise segments. Princess's Alaska program is the brand's strongest single argument. The line operates a vertically-integrated cruisetour — rail cars, the McKinley Princess Wilderness Lodge, the Denali Princess Wilderness Lodge, and motorcoach transfers between them — that no other major cruise line matches. A 14-night Alaska cruisetour combining a 7-night cruise with a 7-night land program is the brand's signature trip. The Princess Plus and Princess Premier fare bundles (introduced 2022, refined since) are now the brand's standard pricing tiers. Princess Plus adds beverage package, WiFi, gratuities, and two specialty-dining meals to the standard fare; Princess Premier adds unlimited specialty dining, premium beverage package, and reserved theater seating on top. For most 7-night Caribbean or Alaska bookings, Princess Plus is the operationally easier pick — the math typically pencils to better-than-even value vs. paying piecemeal, and it eliminates the daily-folio surprise at disembarkation. Best for: Alaska cruisetours with land-lodge integration, 50+ travelers who want a calmer onboard rhythm, destination-led Caribbean and Mediterranean itineraries, MedallionClass-friendly travelers who'll use the app-driven service. Less good for: families with under-10s, party-deck culture, sub-7-night cheap-Caribbean weekend trips (Carnival is the better pick).