Sun Princess accidents and incidents

09 October 2024Coast Guard Medevacs

On October 9, 2024, three passengers were medevaced from Sun Princess as the ship remained stranded off Florida’s coast due to Hurricane Milton's approach.

A helicopter crew dispatched from USCG Air Station Miami hoisted a male passenger who "needed a higher level of care". On the same day, two more passengers were medevaced (by a rescue boat) due to health issues not connected to the weather.

The incidents occurred at the end of the 16-day Transatlantic Cruises (UK to USA itinerary Sept 23-Oct 9, from Southampton to Fort Lauderdale) visiting ports in England (Isle of Portland/Sep 4), Spain (Vigo/Sep 26), Portugal Madeira (Funchal/Sep 29) and Spains' Canary Islands (Santa Cruz de Tenerife/Sep 30).

The ship was scheduled to dock in Fort Lauderdale on October 9th. However, Port Everglades closed due to Hurricane Milton (Category 5 storm/ranked the second-most intense cyclone in the Gulf of Mexico - after Hurricane Rita/2005). The port's closure forced the ship to remain ~5 mi/~8 km offshore, necessitating a medevac via aircraft.

21 May 2024Coast Guard Medevacs

On May 21, 2024, a 29-year-old female crew was medevaced by the Hellenic Coast Guard in Crete. The woman (employed in the retail department/shop clerk) was disembarked from the ship docked in Souda/Chania (Crete island, Greece) at the request of the ship’s officers from the Port Authority.

The woman was ambulanced to a private clinic on the island.

Details regarding the identity or medical condition of the patient were not disclosed.

The incident occurred during the 7-day Eastern Mediterranea Cruise (itinerary May 18-25, from Civitavecchia-Rome to Piraeus-Athens) visiting Naples (May 19), Souda (May 21), Istanbul (May 23) and Mykonos Island (May 24).

16 March 2024Structural and Technical Issues

The scheduled for March 16, 2024, visit to Santorini Island (Greece) was canceled and replaced with Chania (Crete Island, Greece). For the itinerary change Princess Cruises cited "technical delay".

As compensation, all passengers received US$50 in OBC (non-refundable onboard credit per person) to be used for shipboard purchases (bars, specialty dining venues, shops, photo galleries, spa treatments) as well as for land tours/shore excursions.

The accident occurred during the 10-day Mediterranean Cruise (itinerary Mar 10-19, from Barcelona to Civitavecchia-Rome) with call ports Palma de Mallorca (Mar 10), Messina Sicily (Mar12), Piraeus-Athens (Mar14), Kusadasi-Ephesus (Mar 15), Santorini Greece (Mar 15/canceled, replaced with Chania) and Naples (Mar 18).

24 January 2024Structural and Technical Issues

On January 24, 2024, Princess Cruises announced that due to Fincantieri Monfalcone shipyard issues (unspecified), the vessel's delivery would be delayed, resulting in the cancellation of the inaugural cruise.

The next table shows the first canceled Maiden Voyage itinerary.

Soon after the first cancellation, the company also canceled the consequent voyage (departure Feb 14th) as the vessel required additional technical work while docked at the Monfalcone yard. The maiden voyage was rescheduled for February 28th.

The next table shows the second canceled Maiden Voyage itinerary.

All affected bookings received full refunds (of the cruise fares paid plus all/if any pre-purchased onboard amenities and services) plus a 50% bonus in FCC/future cruise credit (to be utilized by November 30th, 2024).

Customers with booked flights additionally were compensated with USD 200 per person for flight change/cancellation fees.

Princess Cruises also protected all travel agent commissions.