Star Princess Delayed By Two Months

April 19, 2024 Randy Young

Princess Cruises announced today that the debut of the Star Princess will be pushed back by two months. Originally slated to debut on July 29, 2025, this follow-up to the new Sun Princess will now launch on September 26, 2025. It’s sad new for those on the first sailings, but thankfully with this much notice, they can adjust their plans.

Missed milestones led to the Star Princess delay

In a press release, Princess Cruises stated:

“Despite our collective dedication and relentless pursuit to deliver the ship in late July, it has become evident that additional time is required to ensure the Star Princess is delivered to the highest standards expected by our guests,” said John Padgett, president of Princess Cruises.

The new launch date means Star Princess will miss much of what was supposed to be its inaugural European season. Instead, Star Princess will sail an 11-day and 7-day cruise from Barcelona before a 14-day transatlantic crossing. It will arrive at its homeport of Fort Lauderdale on October 22.

Guests who are booked on any of the impacted voyages will be able to rebook a sailing on any Princess cruise worldwide or they can cancel for a full refund of the cruise fare. Guests who rebook will receive future cruise and onboard-credits which will vary depending on the sailing they select.

Early delay is good news for the first Star Princess guests

The Star Princess is the second in the Sphere class of ships, following the Sun Princess, which debuted this year. That ship had quite a rocky start, with Princess Cruises delaying the launch twice just weeks before it was set to sail.

Even once the ship finally sailed, guests were extremely disappointed to find the ship was not even finished. Those on the inaugural cruise and several after it discovered that many of the features that were supposed to make this ship special weren’t ready. None of the main production shows were ready for guests, leaving the schedule pretty empty most evenings. In addition, the new Dome area on the ship was closed much of the time before the performers were practicing the shows in the space. Lastly, the new Park19 area, which has attractions for the whole family, wasn’t open yet.

Hopefully, this early delay will mean that everything will be ready when Star Princess finally sets sail.