Princess Cruises sending 7 ships to Europe in 2017

The line's newest ship, Majestic Princess, debuts in spring 2017.

Princess Cruises will send six cruise ships to Europe for the spring and summer seasons of 2017, visiting 119 destinations in 27 countries. It will be a special season for the premium line, which introduces its newest ship, Majestic Princess in April 2017. Cruises go on sale Dec. 3.

"Princess is known for offering the best cruise itineraries around the globe and our 2017 Europe season is sure to inspire our guests with our newest and largest ships in the Mediterranean and Northern Europe," says Jan Swartz, Princess Cruises president. "We're especially excited to debut Majestic Princess in the Mediterranean before she officially sails to Asia for her maiden China cruise season."

Princess now offers the More Ashore program, crafting the line's newest itineraries to give guests more opportunities to experience the color, culture and flavors of the region in 2017. With port calls offering more time ashore with either late night departures (9 p.m. or later), an overnight, or a two-day experience, travelers can see the sights during the day and then experience the nightlife of select destinations in the evening. Highlights of the More Ashore program in Europe include overnights in Dublin and St. Petersburg on select sailings, as well as late evening stays in more than 15 countries.

Here are some highlights of the Princess Cruises 2017 Europe program:

Majestic Princess: The newest cruise ship to join the Princess fleet debuts in Rome (Civitavecchia) on April 4, 2017 for a five-day Maiden Adriatic Sea roundtrip voyage visiting Kotor and Corfu. The 3,560-guest Majestic Princess then sails on a series of seven-, 14-, 21- and 28-day Mediterranean voyages departing Barcelona, Athens and Rome from April 9-May 14, 2017.

Cruises to the Mediterranean: In addition to Majestic Princess, Royal Princess features new 11-day Grand Mediterranean and 10-day Western Mediterranean combinable for a 21-day Grand Mediterranean Collection, as well as seven, 14-, 21- and 28-day sailings throughout the Mediterranean.

Scandinavia & Russia Cruises: Regal Princess returns to Northern Europe, along with Crown Princess and Pacific Princess for cruise vacations to Scandinavia and Russia, offering an overnight in St. Petersburg with departures from London (Southampton or Dover) or Copenhagen. A new Pacific Princess Baltic Heritage itinerary includes overnights in Stockholm and St. Petersburg, sailing from London (Dover).

British Isles Cruises: The 2017 Europe season marks the line's largest British Isles season ever with 12 departures on Caribbean Princess and two on Pacific Princess, including last night stays in Edinburgh offering the opportunity to visit the world famous Edinburgh Military Tattoo on select sailings. All 12-day British Isles cruises include a new late evening stay in Belfast and an option of an overnight in Dublin on select departures from London (Southampton).

Iceland & Norway Cruises: Both Crown Princess and Pacific Princess will offer North Cape voyages to the Arctic Circle during the peak midnight sun period around the summer solstice. Crown Princess will also visit the spectacular Norwegian fjords, while Pacific Princess will feature a maiden call in Haugesund, Norway. Pacific Princess will also offer 14-day Iceland & Norway itineraries visiting off-the-beaten path ports in Iceland and the Shetland Islands. She will also cross to the land of fire and ice on a Transatlantic passage featuring Iceland.

New Ports of Call: Summer 2017 features maiden port calls to Haugesund (Norway), Oban (Scotland), Siracusa (Sicily, Italy), Ulvik (Norway), and St. Tropez (France).

Princess passengers also can enhance their European travel with five Land & Sea Vacation options, which combine certain sailings with an escorted land tour. Choices include Paris and the French Countryside; Ireland's Ring of Kerry; Classic Italy, visiting popular sites in Venice, Florence and Rome; Imperial Treasures of Budapest, Vienna, Prague and Berlin, and Swiss Splendors featuring Interlaken and Lucrene, as well as a scenic boat trip on Lake Como.

Source: Princess Cruises sending 7 ships to Europe in 2017