Princess Cruises

From: European Cruise Guide

ABOVE: The Grand Princess in Katakolon, Greece. INSET: Hull painting, and a Princess sun logo.

Princess Cruises is a mid-priced American cruise line that will have seven ships in Europe during its 2012 season. The biggest and newest vessel in the fleet is the 3,782-passenger Ruby Princess, which entered the fleet in 2008. Other large ships in Europe are the Star Princess, Emerald Princess, Crown Princess, and Grand Princess (shown above and in the inset photos). The line will also have two smaller ships on the European circuit: Ocean Princess and Pacific Princess, which are able to visit smaller "boutique ports."

Princess is offering its busiest European cruising schedule to date in 2012, with 57 itineraries and more than 125 voyages. Highlights of this year's Princess cruise calendar include the line's perenially-popular itineraries in the Mediterranean and Northern Europe, with overnight stays in cities like Venice and St. Petersburg on longer cruises.

Cruise line's Web site:

Princess Cruises

Follow @durant_imboden

Most recent cruise reviews:

• Costa Magica (Costa Cruises)

• MSC Poesia (MSC Cruises)

• Rotterdam (Holland America Line)

• Renaissance (European Waterways)