Princess Cruises is expanding its fleet
with the addition of a 680-passenger, 30,000-ton ship it will call
Royal Princess.
The ship is
currently cruising as Swan Hellenics Minerva II and will enter
service with Princess in April 2007, joining the lines other
small-ship vessels, the 670-passenger Tahitian Princess and Pacific
Princess ships. The future Royal Princess first itineraries will be
12-day European sailings in the Mediterranean and Black
Sea.
Were sure this ship
will please our passengers who enjoy traveling aboard a smaller
vessel to exotic destinations, said Princess President Alan
Buckelew in a press release.
Buckelew added that
the ship, which entered service in 2001, would lower Princesss
average ship age to just under six years old, making it one of the
youngest fleets in the industry.
The Minerva II is
Swan Hellenics sole ship. Julie Benson, a spokeswoman for Princess,
said that Princess would only say that Carnival UK is considering
future options for Swan Hellenic but that nothing is confirmed at
this stage.
To contact
reporter Johanna Jainchill, send e-mail to [email protected].