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P&O Princess New Brand & Major Ship Deployments!
Question:
>I have a comment about the new Crown Princess. It is a Grand Class ship >with an added deck and 3000 passengers compared to 2600 on the Grand. I >don’t think this is good. It will be a crowded ship.
Hi Charles, I, too, noticed this change. You are correct if more public space is not allocated. This change was made because this ship was not designed for the US market originally. Best regards, Ray LIGHTHOUSE TRAVEL 800-719-9917 or 805-566-3905 http://www.lighthousetravel.com
Response:
>Well, technically she’s remaining in the P&O Family. All you need to do is >speak German and you’ll feel right at home. >Warren
Hi Warren! Well, I’m glad she’s coming our way. I hope to be able to attend her christening in June. Regards from Germany, Raoul Fiebig "Das Ruderhaus": http://www.ruderhaus.de/ "CruiseReviews.com": http://www.cruisereviews.com/ "Cruisin’ ": http://www.stutt.com/cruising/home.html
Response:
> Well, technically she’s remaining in the P&O Family. All you need to do is > speak German and you’ll feel right at home.
I have a comment about the new Crown Princess. It is a Grand Class ship with an added deck and 3000 passengers compared to 2600 on the Grand. I don’t think this is good. It will be a crowded ship. — Charles
Response:
Hi Everyone, I received this press release from P&O Princess and thought it would be of interest. If you have missed any of my news’ postings, they are available on my web site. Best regards, Ray LIGHTHOUSE TRAVEL 800-719-9917 or 805-566-3905 http://www.lighthousetravel.com 10th April 2002 – P&O Princess Cruises announces the launch of Ocean Village, a new contemporary brand for the UK, and revised ship deployments Ocean Village, a new contemporary UK brand to be launched in May 2003 Transfer of Sea Princess to the UK fleet from the North American fleet in Spring 2003 Fourth Grand class vessel, currently under construction, to be introduced to North American fleet in Spring 2004 P&O Princess Cruises today announced the launch of a new brand in the UK cruising industry and revised ship deployments which will accelerate the Group’s development in the fast growing cruise segment of the UK holiday market, offer more choice to customers and enhance the position of its Princess Cruises fleet in North America. Ocean Village The number of cruise passengers from the UK has more than doubled since 1995, but cruises still represent a small proportion of all UK holidays. Recognising the great potential for growth in cruising within the UK, P&O Princess is creating a new brand, Ocean Village, which will target a young and active customer base, further expanding the appeal of cruising within the UK. Initially, Ocean Village will have one ship, providing a dedicated fly-cruise product for the UK from May 2003. The ship, currently called Arcadia and part of the P&O Cruises UK fleet, will have 1,620 lower berths, eight bars, an internet cafe and a bistro endorsed by the TV chef, James Martin. She will provide a cruise experience designed for British passengers, with a relaxed contemporary atmosphere and an emphasis on informality, health and well-being. The initial summer season itineraries will offer one and two-week Mediterranean cruises, together with cruise and stay holidays, based on two alternating seven night itineraries out of Palma, Majorca. Ship deployments The 2,010 lower berth Sea Princess will be transferred to the P&O Cruises brand in the UK from Spring 2003. Currently part of the Princess fleet in North America, Sea Princess will be refitted to cater to British tastes and renamed Adonia. Her first season will be providing European cruises from Southampton. Together with the introduction of Oceana (currently Ocean Princess) and the withdrawal of Victoria in November 2002, these changes will give the P&O Cruises brand a fleet of four modern ships. By mid 2003, the P&O Cruises fleet will have a weighted average age of under five years and will have an average ship size of over 1,900 berths. Approximately 35% of the cabins in the fleet will have balconies. P&O Princess also announced that the 3,100 lower berth ship currently under construction in Fincantieri and scheduled for delivery in Spring 2004, will now be delivered to the Princess fleet in North America rather than the P&O Cruises UK fleet. This ship, to be named Crown Princess, has the same basic design as the highly successful Grand Princess series with changes to the public rooms and an extra deck added to provide additional capacity. Coupled with the transfer of Sea Princess to the UK, this change moves some of Princess’ capacity growth from 2003 to 2004 and represents a further modernisation of the Princess fleet. Based on current plans, by the middle of 2004 the Princess fleet will have a weighted average age of under four years and will have an average ship size of approximately 2,300 lower berths. Approximately 55% of the cabins in the fleet will have balconies. Peter Ratcliffe, Chief Executive Officer, P&O Princess Cruises stated: "Our existing strong global reach and modern fleet gives us the flexibility to deploy our fleet strategically. The ship deployments we have announced today will enable us to accelerate our growth in the fast growing cruise segment of the UK holiday market, further modernise our fleet within North America and provide greater choice to our customers." Attachments: Appendix I: P&O Princess Cruises’ Ocean Cruise Capacity and Deployment Appendix II: Group Fleet and Summary of Changes – Ends – Enquiries P&O Princess +44 (0) 20 7805 1200 Caroline Keppel-Palmer Brunswick +44 (0)20 7404 5959 Sophie Fitton John Sunnucks P&O Princess P&O Princess Cruises plc is a leading international cruise company with some of the strongest cruising brand names: Princess Cruises in North America; P&O Cruises, Swan Hellenic and Ocean Village in the UK; AIDA and A’ROSA in Germany; and P&O Cruises in Australia. It is a leading provider of cruises to Alaska, the Caribbean, Europe, the Panama Canal and other Exotic destinations. The current complement of 18 ships offering 29,460 berths is set to grow in the next three years with seven new ocean cruise ships and three river cruise vessels on order. P&O Princess Cruises has approximately 19,500 employees worldwide and carried over one million passengers in 2001, generating a revenue of approximately $2.5 billion (approximately