5/7/24: Princess Expands Caribbean Program

[Princess Cruises Fann]

https://www.travelgossip.co.uk/product-news/grand-princess-to-homeport-in-san-juan-for-winter-2025-6/
 

Wonder what Princess will do with the Grand cruises that are currently scheduled for Australia and New Zealand during that time and still show as available as booking on the Princess Cruises website?

Edited May 7 by Princess Cruises Fann

[spencercoop]

It's interesting that the cruises are still on the website and available for booking.  You would have thought they would have closed them off.

 

I guess that leaves just the Discovery & Crown in Australia.

[Cruise Junky]

Ugh. We dodged that bullet. We were booked on the 36 dayer in October but switched to HAL. Never good to have your cruises cancelled.  

[azbirdmom]

At least they are making this announcement before any flights or hotel arrangements would have been made.  I honestly thought that with the new ships coming on line that they would announce that the Grand was being sold.

[LACruiser88]

May 7, 2024 9:30 AM EDT

 

Princess Cruises Expands Caribbean Program with Return to San Juan Home Port

 

Grand Princess to Sail Southern Caribbean Itineraries from Puerto Rico, Visiting Most Ports of any Seven-Day Caribbean Itinerary

 

FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla., May 7, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Princess Cruises today announced its return to San Juan, Puerto Rico for a season of Southern Caribbean cruises onboard Grand Princess, from October 2025 through March 2026.

 

This vibrant capital city of Puerto Rico offers rich history and culture with must-see attractions for Princess guests pre- and post-cruise. These seven-day cruises, which visit more ports than any other 7-day Princess cruise to the Caribbean, are on sale May 16.

 

 Princess Cruises Expands Caribbean Program with Return to San Juan Home Port  

 

"Our return to San Juan after more than a decade not only reconnects our guests with a port rich in history and charm, but further expands the variety of departure points across North America that our guests can sail from," said Terry Thornton, chief commercial officer for Princess Cruises. "Puerto Rico remains one of the fastest-growing destinations in the Caribbean and continues to attract new airlift from source markets across the U.S. as well as markets in Europe and South America, which makes it a great fit for Princess. Plus, there are many outstanding options to choose from for a great pre- or post-cruise stay."

 

Originally scheduled to sail Australia, New Zealand and South Pacific voyages from Brisbane and Sydney, Grand Princess will now sail two alternating, seven-night itineraries, with departures from October 12, 2025 - March 29, 2026.

 

These new itineraries each feature visits to five different and unique destinations, including many of the most highly rated Southern Caribbean destinations—many of which are not available on 7-day cruises departing from Florida.

 

"We are excited to welcome Princess Cruises back home to the Port of San Juan. This announcement underscores our commitment to cement San Juan as the leading homeport in the region, where guests can sail throughout the wonderful ports of the Eastern and Southern Caribbean.

 

Furthermore, the sailings will help drive economic development for both Puerto Rico and our regional partners", said Carlos Mercado Santiago, executive director of the Puerto Rico Tourism Company.

 

Grand Princess Itineraries Sailing Roundtrip from San Juan:

 

Day 1 – Depart San Juan

 

Day 2 – Tortola

 

Day 3 – St. Kitts

 

Day 4 – Dominica

 

Day 5 – Grenada

 

Day 6 – Barbados

 

Day 7 – At Sea

 

Day 8 – Return San Juan

 

 

Day 1 – Depart San Juan

 

Day 2 – St. Thomas

 

Day 3 – St. Maarten

 

Day 4 – Antigua

 

Day 5 – St. Vincent

 

Day 6 – Barbados

 

Day 7 – At Sea

 

Day 8 – Return San Juan

 

Guests can choose to combine itineraries for an incredible 14-day voyage.

 

The 2,600-guest Grand Princess offers an array of culinary delights, signature Princess amenities like The Sanctuary and Movies Under the Stars, and Broadway-style productions in the Princess Theater. Plus, guests can enjoy a truly personalized vacation with Princess MedallionClass, featuring next-level technology with MedallionNet - the best WiFi at sea - food and drinks delivered wherever they are, touchless experiences and more.

 

Plus, enhancing the vacation value with Princess Plus and Premier inclusive packages allow guests to save over 65% on essentials such as gratuities, Wi-Fi, beverages, and more, providing added convenience and enjoyment for their journey.

 

[Host CJSKIDS]

Thanks for posting this. My first Princess cruise was on the Golden out of San Juan and I did a few more after that.  I'll have to check into this as I love the Southern Caribbean.

[doghog]

9 minutes ago, LACruiser88 said:

May 7, 2024 9:30 AM EDT

 

Princess Cruises Expands Caribbean Program with Return to San Juan Home Port

Thanks. We use to enjoy cruising out of San Juan. Port intensive intinaries. We aren't sea day fans. Great for B2B cruises. Like the two itineraries you posted.  We no longer cruise out of SJ as we grew tired of the long days and flights to get to SJ. Bummer for us. But...

[Steelers36]

"Back in the day", we did the two 7-nighters offered out of SJU on the CB.  It was a great way to get an introduction to more islands.  I like that both legs have a sea day at the end.  We were able to fly N/S between YYZ and SJU at the time.  I'm not sure if they had 10-nighters then which generally have more sea days.  I hope this works out well for PCL.

 

Nowadays, we'd just be going tor a tropical escape, so PE suits as a jump point.  It is true that cost-per-day to cruise was much less out of SJU and helps offset the higher flight cost.

[Honolulu Blue]

1 hour ago, LACruiser88 said:

May 7, 2024 9:30 AM EDT

 

Princess Cruises Expands Caribbean Program with Return to San Juan Home Port

 

Grand Princess to Sail Southern Caribbean Itineraries from Puerto Rico, Visiting Most Ports of any Seven-Day Caribbean Itinerary

 

FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla., May 7, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Princess Cruises today announced its return to San Juan, Puerto Rico for a season of Southern Caribbean cruises onboard Grand Princess, from October 2025 through March 2026.

 

This vibrant capital city of Puerto Rico offers rich history and culture with must-see attractions for Princess guests pre- and post-cruise. These seven-day cruises, which visit more ports than any other 7-day Princess cruise to the Caribbean, are on sale May 16.

 

 Princess Cruises Expands Caribbean Program with Return to San Juan Home Port  

 

"Our return to San Juan after more than a decade not only reconnects our guests with a port rich in history and charm, but further expands the variety of departure points across North America that our guests can sail from," said Terry Thornton, chief commercial officer for Princess Cruises. "Puerto Rico remains one of the fastest-growing destinations in the Caribbean and continues to attract new airlift from source markets across the U.S. as well as markets in Europe and South America, which makes it a great fit for Princess. Plus, there are many outstanding options to choose from for a great pre- or post-cruise stay."

 

Originally scheduled to sail Australia, New Zealand and South Pacific voyages from Brisbane and Sydney, Grand Princess will now sail two alternating, seven-night itineraries, with departures from October 12, 2025 - March 29, 2026.

 

These new itineraries each feature visits to five different and unique destinations, including many of the most highly rated Southern Caribbean destinations—many of which are not available on 7-day cruises departing from Florida.

 

"We are excited to welcome Princess Cruises back home to the Port of San Juan. This announcement underscores our commitment to cement San Juan as the leading homeport in the region, where guests can sail throughout the wonderful ports of the Eastern and Southern Caribbean.

 

Furthermore, the sailings will help drive economic development for both Puerto Rico and our regional partners", said Carlos Mercado Santiago, executive director of the Puerto Rico Tourism Company.

 

Grand Princess Itineraries Sailing Roundtrip from San Juan:

 

Day 1 – Depart San Juan

 

Day 2 – Tortola

 

Day 3 – St. Kitts

 

Day 4 – Dominica

 

Day 5 – Grenada

 

Day 6 – Barbados

 

Day 7 – At Sea

 

Day 8 – Return San Juan

 

 

Day 1 – Depart San Juan

 

Day 2 – St. Thomas

 

Day 3 – St. Maarten

 

Day 4 – Antigua

 

Day 5 – St. Vincent

 

Day 6 – Barbados

 

Day 7 – At Sea

 

Day 8 – Return San Juan

 

Guests can choose to combine itineraries for an incredible 14-day voyage.

 

The 2,600-guest Grand Princess offers an array of culinary delights, signature Princess amenities like The Sanctuary and Movies Under the Stars, and Broadway-style productions in the Princess Theater. Plus, guests can enjoy a truly personalized vacation with Princess MedallionClass, featuring next-level technology with MedallionNet - the best WiFi at sea - food and drinks delivered wherever they are, touchless experiences and more.

 

Plus, enhancing the vacation value with Princess Plus and Premier inclusive packages allow guests to save over 65% on essentials such as gratuities, Wi-Fi, beverages, and more, providing added convenience and enjoyment for their journey.

Thanks for sharing this. It's nice to know that Carnival Corporation is finally returning to San Juan. My opinion is that any route from there is one of the best Caribbean cruises anyone can take. I'll certainly consider these, perhaps as a B2B. The devil is in the details.

 

P.S. One nice thing about leaving from SJ is that they often have late departures. I'll have to look to see if Princess follows this.

[Steelers36]

9 minutes ago, Honolulu Blue said:

 

 

P.S. One nice thing about leaving from SJ is that they often have late departures. I'll have to look to see if Princess follows this.

I would expect the late departures to continue.  Gives lots of time for same-day fliers to arrive.  

 

The evidence is in the itineraries.  With Tortola (BVI) and St Thomas (USVI) as the first port stops, these are a mere hop, skip, and a short sail from SJU.

[no1racefan1]

Well this could put Princess in the running for my next cruise, whenever that is. I've always planned on sailing out of SJ next time we visit the Caribbean.

[doghog]

San Juan is also a great place to leave from to take in the ABC port stops along with other Caribbean port stops on the same itinerary.  

Edited May 7 by doghog

[doghog]

18 minutes ago, no1racefan1 said:

Well this could put Princess in the running for my next cruise, whenever that is. I've always planned on sailing out of SJ next time we visit the Caribbean.

Our San Juan cruises (Celebrity and RC) have left from the Pan Am pier which is located across the harbor from Old San Juan. Our port stops at SJ have always been downtown OSJ. Assuming Princess will also be leaving from the Pan Am pier. 

Edited May 7 by doghog

[LACruiser88]

Our first Caribbean cruise was R/T Old San Juan on the Dawn Princess.  Great memories!

 

 

 

Edited May 7 by LACruiser88

[Geoffa30]

Shame it’s using a much older ship. Hopefully if it proves to be a success, Princess will use a newer ship in subsequent years.

[Honolulu Blue]

8 minutes ago, doghog said:

Our San Juan cruises (Celebrity and RC) have left from the Pan Am pier which is located across the harbor from Old San Juan. Our port stops at SJ have always been downtown OSJ. Assuming Princess will also be leaving from the Pan Am pier. 

When I did variations of this route on Carnival, we always left from OSJ.  I'd prefer that, since the views from there at night are nicer.

[doghog]

5 minutes ago, Honolulu Blue said:

When I did variations of this route on Carnival, we always left from OSJ.  I'd prefer that, since the views from there at night are nicer.

Agree. I know one of the OSJ piers has that huge terminal (I think yellow in color) that we have disembark thru when stopping in OSJ as a port visit. 

[spethstation]

Amazing itineraries! I'm going to keep my eye on these ones. I wish the ship was a little newer.

[voljeep]

3 minutes ago, spethstation said:

Amazing itineraries! I'm going to keep my eye on these ones. I wish the ship was a little newer.

no Bonaire?   ...  bummer

 

Princess has the CB porting in Port Canaveral the first season, then ups the game with the SKY he next year.  We'll wait for a 'royal class' ship before doing a fly to cruise in San Juan

[californiagirl]

This is very appealing to us.  We are tired of the same old eastern/western itineraries.  Our very first cruise in 1998 was out of San Juan on Celebrity Galaxy.  We were originally booked on Sea Princess but her launch was delayed. 

[skynight]

It's nice Princess is going back to San Juan. One issue with San Juan was flying passengers there from around the country. If I remember correctly sailing time was late evening. 

[TRLD]

2 hours ago, Geoffa30 said:

Shame it’s using a much older ship. Hopefully if it proves to be a success, Princess will use a newer ship in subsequent years.

Maybe not. Most likely using the Grand because it is one of Princesses smallest ships and easiest to fill.

[Princess Cruises Fann]

Did Southern Caribbean from San Juan on the Caribbean Princess in 2008 and 2010. Look forward to booking a cruise when they come available. 

[LACruiser88]

FWIW, the Sun will be making a port stop in San Juan on our November of 2025 cruise.

[Cruise Junky]

As Grand is doing Alaska prior to these cruises there could be a nice Panama Canal repositioning cruise.