Another Princess Cruises ship is returning today as the Island Princess welcomes guests back in Port Everglades.
Now the 10th ship to resume service for the premium brand, the 2003-built vessel is sailing in the Panama Canal for its first cruise after a two-year operational pause.
Departing from Fort Lauderdale, the 14-night cruise sails to Los Angeles and features stops at five additional ports in Mexico, Colombia, Panama and Costa Rica.
As a highlight of the itinerary, the ship will transit the Panama Canal using the channel’s original, historic locks.
After returning to Florida with a similar voyage, the Island Princess offers a unique transatlantic crossing to England before kicking off a summer program in Europe.
Called “Fire & Ice Explorer,” the 18-night repositioning cruise departs from Fort Lauderdale and features three stops in Iceland, in addition to a visit to Halifax, Canada.
Before arriving in Southampton, its homeport for most of the upcoming season, the Island Princess also calls at three other ports in the United Kingdom – including Lerwick, in the Shetland Islands.
Through November, the vessel offers a selection of longer itineraries in Northern Europe and the Mediterranean that feature visits to varied destinations including Greenland, Iceland, Svalbard, the British Island, Holy Land and more.
The Island Princess originally entered service in 2003 as a sister to the 2002-built Coral Princess.
Featuring more than 700 balcony cabins, the 88,000-ton vessel was custom designed to offer Panama Canal cruises and offers an array of amenities, including specialty and casual dining options, a casino, a two-deck theater and more.
Island Princess also features Princess’ MedallionClass Experience, offering a number of new features that leverage touchless technologies and significantly enhance and personalize the guest experience, as well as support new health protocols.
Replacing the traditional cruise card, the OceanMedallion wearable device expands touch-free options and customization on board.
Following the Discovery Princess, the Island Princess became the second vessel to restart cruise operations for Princess in 2022.
Continuing its restart plans, the premium brand is adding two more ships – the Royal Princess and the Crown Princess – into the active lineup in May.
