I’m back on Princess Cruises, and this sailing is going to kick off what’s shaping up to be a pretty busy couple of months of cruising for me. Caribbean cruise season here in South Florida is starting to warm up, with more ships making their annual return to the Sunshine State for the winter – much like the snowbirds who fly from Laguardia to Palm Beach to escape the cold for a few months!
(If you’ve ever taken one of those flights during “the season” you know how hell-ish it could be!)
This time I’m setting sail on a seven-day Eastern Caribbean cruise aboard Regal Princess, departing from Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale.
Eastern Caribbean: Regal Princess
| Date | Port | Country | Start | End |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 15 | Fort Lauderdale, FL | United States | 3:00 PM | |
| Aug 16 | Princess Cays | The Bahamas | 9:00 AM | 4:00 PM |
| Aug 17 | At Sea | – | – | – |
| Aug 18 | San Juan | Puerto Rico | 10:00 AM | 7:00 PM |
| Aug 19 | St. Thomas | USVI | 7:00 AM | 5:00 PM |
| Aug 20 | At Sea | – | – | – |
| Aug 21 | At Sea | – | – | – |
| Aug 22 | Fort Lauderdale, FL | United States | 6:00 AM |
Before we get too far, there’s a little Princess history to clear up because this isn’t the first ship to carry the Regal Princess name. The original Regal Princess entered service in 1991 and sailed for Princess until 2007, when she transferred to P&O Cruises Australia and became Pacific Dawn. After a brief plan to turn her into a floating residential community, she eventually found her way to Ambassador Cruise Line. Today, that 1991 ship is still sailing as Ambience, proving that old cruise ships still do have some life left in them!

The Regal Princess I’m on today is the much newer version. She was built by renowned Italian shipbuilder, Fincantieri, and entered service for Princess in May 2014. She’s the second ship in Carnival Corporation’s Royal class, following Royal Princess. Princess eventually received six ships based on the Royal-class design: Royal Princess, Regal Princess, Majestic Princess, Sky Princess, Enchanted Princess and Discovery Princess. A seventh ship based on the design, Britannia, was built for sister brand P&O Cruises.
If Enchanted Princess sounds familiar to regular readers, that’s because I sailed on her over Christmas in December 2024, so there should be quite a few familiar sights as I make my way around Regal Princess this week.
At 142,229 gross tons and 1,083 feet long, Regal Princess is not a small ship, but the newer Sphere-class ships in the fleet are larger. She can hold 4,250 passengers at double occupancy, has 19 decks, 1,780 guest staterooms and a top speed of around 22 knots. One of the interesting statistics is that more than 80% of her passenger cabins have balconies, something that was a pretty big design feature when the Royal class was introduced.
The Royal class also introduced several features that became guest favorites with this class of Princess ships, including the beautiful three-story Piazza at the center of the ship and the SeaWalk, the glass-bottom walkway that sticks out over the side of the ship high above the water. If you’re afraid of heights, you may wanna skip that one.
There’s also a pretty strong Love Boat connection with this particular ship, and Princess has never been shy about reminding us of its television history and the fact that they’re pretty much responsible for bringing the concept of a cruise vacation mainstream.
When Regal Princess was officially named in Fort Lauderdale on November 5, 2014, Princess brought together the six principal cast members from the original Love Boat television series to serve collectively as the ship’s godparents: Gavin MacLeod, Fred Grandy, Ted Lange, Bernie Kopell, Lauren Tewes and Jill Whelan.

Then in 2022, Regal Princess became the setting for the American version of The Real Love Boat, the reality dating show that debuted on CBS. The series was filmed aboard the ship while she was sailing in the Mediterranean. An Australian version of the show was produced at the same time, also aboard Regal Princess.
So that’s the ship that will be home for the next seven days. Since I already have some experience with her newer sister Enchanted Princess, I’m interested to see how the two compare, what has changed since my last Princess cruise, and, of course, how Regal Princess is holding up after more than a decade of sailing.
But first, we need to get onboard!
Booking & Pre-Cruise Upgrade Opportunities
For this trip, Princess Cruises provided me with a complimentary interior stateroom, with the option to pay for an upgrade at the time of booking. I decided to do that and booked a Mini-Suite, giving me a little more room for the week and, more importantly, a balcony.
As the cruise got closer, the usual Princess upgrade emails started arriving. Princess uses a third-party company called Plusgrade to handle its stateroom upgrade bidding program, which allows passengers to submit offers for higher-category cabins that may become available before sailing.
My offers this time included a Reserve Collection Mini-Suite, which I had already looked at and decided wasn’t worth bidding on for the additional benefits it provides, as well as several categories of Penthouse Suites.
I did decide to take a shot at the suites and submitted bids on three different Penthouse Suite categories. Like other cruise line upgrade programs, Princess gives you a minimum and maximum bid range along with an indicator showing how strong your offer is. You can bid on multiple categories at the same time, and your credit card is only charged if one of those bids is accepted. For solo travelers like me, however, the bid amount is still based on double occupancy, so a $500-per-person bid really means $1,000.

Unfortunately, there was no upgrade fairy visiting me this time.
This sailing has been sold out for quite some time, so I wasn’t terribly surprised when all three of my Penthouse Suite bids eventually came back unsuccessful. Upgrade bidding ultimately depends on inventory becoming available, and on a completely full ship there simply aren’t many empty suites floating around waiting for someone to move into them.
So the Mini-Suite I originally booked is where I’ll be spending the next seven days! More on that in a minute.
Embarkation at Port Everglades
My check-in window for today was between 10:30 and 11:00 a.m., but thanks to some good old-fashioned I-95 traffic, I arrived at Port Everglades a little after 11.
The good news was that once I actually got to the port, things moved along shockingly well. This is the slow season for cruising in South Florida, and there were only two ships in port today: Regal Princess and Disney Cruise Line’s Disney Destiny. For Port Everglades cruisers, that’s a blessing.
On busy winter weekends, traffic getting into Port Everglades can be a complete mess, with the line for the security checkpoint at the port entrance sometimes backing up for more than a mile. Today, there was no line at all. I drove right through and headed toward Terminal 2.
The longest wait I encountered was actually at the traffic circle outside the terminal, where cars were lined up to drop off luggage with the porters. Once my bags were handed over, I headed into the parking garage.
And this is where I have to complain a little about Terminal 2.
It’s simply not designed very well if you’re parking at the port. After dropping off your luggage, you park in the garage, take an elevator up to Level 5, walk across a skybridge, then take another elevator all the way back down to Level 1 to get into the terminal. It’s an unnecessarily complicated route when all you’re trying to do is walk from your car to the ship.
It’s manageable on embarkation day when the porters already have your big suitcases. On debarkation day, when you’re doing that same trip in reverse while dragging luggage behind you, it makes the worst day of the cruise even worse.
Once inside the terminal, though, everything moved quickly. There was almost no wait for security, and from there I headed into the Blue Lane for check-in.
Princess uses two different check-in lanes, and the Blue Lane is generally for passengers who still need to pick up their Princess Medallion at the terminal. My passport was scanned, my Medallion was handed over, and that was pretty much it.
But Scott, what exactly is this Medallion you keep talking about?
What is a Princess Medallion?
The Princess Medallion is one of those cruise technologies that sounds a little gimmicky until you actually use it. Then you start wondering why every cruise line doesn’t have something similar.
If you’re familiar with Disney’s MagicBand system, the basic idea will make sense. Instead of carrying around a traditional plastic cruise card, Princess gives you a small, round wearable device that essentially becomes your “everything” while you’re onboard.
It serves as your room key, boarding pass and shipboard charge card, but that’s really only the beginning of what it does.

As you approach your stateroom, the system recognizes that you’re there. Your photo appears on the small display outside the room, the light around the door handle turns green, and the door unlocks automatically. You don’t have to pull anything out of your pocket, tap a card against the door or even touch the Medallion. The first time I saw this in action on Enchanted Princess, I was in love!
Walk up to the door and it knows you’re home.
The same technology is used throughout the ship. When you approach a bar or restaurant, crew members can see your name and photo on their handheld devices, which allows them to greet you by name and pull up your account without you having to hand over a cruise card. Although sometimes this dines’t work as planned and they still need to scan your Medallion.
The Medallion also works together with the Princess app allowing food and drinks to be delivered to you around the ship based on your location.
And yes, the ship can essentially figure out where you are.
That’s one of those things that sounds slightly creepy, but in practice it makes the onboard experience work extremely well. If you order a drink from your phone while sitting near the pool, for example, the system can help the crew member delivering it find you without you having to specify exactly which chair you’re sitting in.
Princess gives you the Medallion with a basic lanyard, but there are plenty of other ways to wear it. You can buy wristbands, clips and other accessories that turn it into something closer to a watch or attach it to your clothing. So it’s more than a device… it’s a revenue stream!
Princess Cruises Muster Drill Process
Like nearly every major cruise line these days, with Disney being the notable exception, Princess uses an electronic muster process instead of gathering everyone together at the same time for a traditional safety drill.
Once you’re onboard and connected to the ship’s Wi-Fi, the Princess app shows you the location of your assigned muster station. You simply make your way there, tap your Medallion to check in, and that part of the process is complete.
You’ll also need to watch the required safety video, which can be viewed either in your stateroom or through the Princess app. Once both steps are completed, you’re done.
Stateroom R521 on Regal Princess
As I mentioned earlier, for this cruise I’m staying in a Mini-Suite, specifically stateroom R521. It’s located midship on the Riviera Deck, which is Deck 14. And yes, that’s what the “R” in the room number stands for.
This particular Mini-Suite can accommodate up to four people and is divided into two areas, a bedroom and a living area, with a curtain that can be pulled between the two for a little extra privacy.
The bedroom area has two twin beds that can be pushed together to form a queen. Across from the bed is a television, and there are nightstands with lamps on both sides. Over in the living area is a sofa that converts into a bed for one person, along with an upper berth that can accommodate a fourth passenger.
There’s also a large desk and vanity area with a couple of drawers for storage, a mini-fridge underneath and a second television mounted across from the sofa.



Now here’s something you definitely need to know if you’re cruising on Regal Princess: there are no USB ports in the rooms!
None.
Not by the bed. Not at the desk. Nowhere.
When it comes to traditional power outlets, you’ll find two U.S. outlets and one U.K. outlet at the desk, and that’s about it. So if you’re traveling with a phone, watch, tablet, camera, laptop and all the other things we seem to bring along these days, you’re going to want to plan accordingly and bring an appropriate cruise-approved charger or adapter.
Storage is pretty good, although the setup is a little different from what you might find on newer ships. As soon as you walk into the room, there’s a large open closet area with plenty of hanging space. The key word there is “open,” because everything you hang up is right there in plain sight.
There’s also a smaller closet or armoire containing the safe, along with several shelves for folded clothes and other items. Between that and the drawers in the desk area, there’s enough space for a week-long cruise.

The bathroom is actually one of the highlights of the room.
It’s a very good size by cruise ship standards, with a large sink and vanity, plenty of counter space and a bathtub/shower combination instead of the usual tiny shower stall with a shower curtain. It’s definitely one of the larger cruise ship bathrooms I’ve had in quite some time and is almost on par size-wise with the bathroom I had aboard Explora I when I sailed on her last December.

Then we get to the balcony.
For a Mini-Suite, this is where things get a little disappointing.
The balcony is small and very narrow. If you were to sit in one of the chairs facing straight out toward the water, your knees would practically be touching the glass. There are two chairs, each with a footrest, which sounds great until you notice the very large, almost comically oversized table taking up a big chunk of the available space.
Normally I’d turn a chair sideways, put my feet up and relax, but with that table sitting there, there really isn’t enough room to do that comfortably. The furniture simply feels too large for the space it’s sitting in.

Inside, though, the Mini-Suite itself feels roomy and is laid out very well. There’s plenty of space to move around, the separation between the sleeping and living areas works nicely, and for one person, there’s more than enough room.
That said, the age of the room is starting to show.
The design comes from that period when dark mahogany-style wood was still very much “in” and shiny metal light fixtures were considered stylish. Now you may be saying, “Scott, the ship was launched in 2014!” True, but ships are designed years earlier. The furniture has its share of dings and scratches, the soft furnishings are showing some wear, one of the bathroom light fixtures isn’t working, the sink stopper has seen better days, and some of the metal fixtures are beginning to show a little rust and pitting.
Nothing is bad enough to make the room uncomfortable or unusable, but you can definitely tell this is a cabin design that dates back more than a decade. A refresh of the furniture, lighting, finishes and, please Princess, some USB ports would go a long way toward bringing it into the 2020s.
Still, R521 is a comfortable, well-designed and genuinely roomy stateroom. For a seven-day cruise, I certainly won’t have any complaints about the amount of space I have in here.
Sailaway
Sailaway was scheduled for 3:00 p.m., and we left right on time as the sailaway party got underway on the Lido Deck.
Now, this is Princess, so don’t expect the kind of wild, all-out deck party you’d find on Carnival. Things here are a little more subdued, very much along the lines of what Holland America does for sailaway. There was music, people gathered around with drinks in hand, plenty of people watching, and just enough activity to officially get the cruise underway without anyone feeling like they needed to start twerking.

With things fairly low-key up on deck, I decided to do a little wandering and start scouting out some of the better places to enjoy my evening libations, which, of course, also means finding the best places for people watching.
One of the best spots for both is the Piazza, the three-story atrium I mentioned earlier. This really is the heart and soul of the ship. There’s live music, shops, bars and plenty of places to grab a light bite, including sandwiches, pizza and sushi. No matter where you’re heading or what you planned on doing, you’ll probably find yourself passing through here over and over again during the cruise.
And there’s almost always something going on.


Other entertainment takes place in the main theater and at Princess Live, which is used for smaller shows, game shows, trivia and other gatherings. You can see everything that was scheduled for today in the daily planner at the end of this post.
One thing I do wish Regal Princess had is a proper wraparound promenade deck.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t.
There are a few sections of the Promenade Deck where you can sit outside and enjoy the view, but if you’re one of those people who likes to say, “I just ate way too much at dinner, so I’m going to walk 12 laps around the ship,” you’re SOL.
First Cocktail Stop
After freshening up, I headed down to the Wheelhouse Bar for the first official cocktail stop of the cruise.
The Wheelhouse sits just outside Crown Grill, the ship’s steakhouse, which makes it a pretty busy spot around dinner time as people linger there while waiting for their tables. There’s plenty of lounge-style seating, and live piano music adds to the atmosphere, making it a great place to settle in for a few drinks before dinner.
Which is exactly what I did.

My original plan was to go with a gin and tonic, but that plan was quickly derailed.
Princess has several of my preferred gins onboard, so gin wasn’t the problem. Tonic was.
I’m admittedly a bit of a tonic snob, and canned Seagram’s or Canada Dry just doesn’t do it for me. Unfortunately, those were the only options available. One of the bartenders told me they have carried Fever-Tree and that she would see if she could track some down for me over the next day or two.
So, martinis it was.
A few of those later, I checked the time and realized I needed to start thinking about dinner.
Dining Options
For those looking for the traditional main dining room experience, Princess offers several different options across its three dining rooms.
Allegro Dining Room offers reservations along with anytime dining, while Concerto Dining Room is also used for anytime dining and includes the separate Reserve Collection dining area for guests staying in those stateroom categories.
Then there’s Symphony Dining Room, which offers the more traditional cruise dining experience with fixed early and late seating at 5:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
As the week goes on, I’ll be talking a lot more about the different restaurants, specialty dining venues and quick-service options onboard. For anyone curious about the main dining room, I’ve included tonight’s menu below.
For me, however, specialty dining was calling.
Crown Grill looked pretty busy, so instead I headed over to Sabatini’s, the ship’s Italian specialty restaurant, at around 8:30 p.m. It was much quieter than the steakhouse, and I was seated immediately.
Dinner at Sabatini’s is $55 per person, but it’s included at no additional charge if you have the Princess Premier package, which includes unlimited specialty dining.
I did purchase Princess Premier for this cruise, which also includes the beverage package, Wi-Fi for up to four devices, unlimited digital photos and several other perks. I’ll get into Premier, Princess Plus and whether they’re actually worth the money later in the week.
Dinner at Sabatini’s on Regal Princess
I started with the Salumi e Formaggi Misti, a nice selection of prosciutto, mortadella, salame, Parmigiano Reggiano, mozzarella and gorgonzola.

For my main course, I went with the Milanese di Vitello con Osso, one of the menu items that carries a $15 upcharge even with Princess Premier.

It’s a bone-in veal chop pounded thin, breaded and fried. I asked if they could prepare it Parmigiana-style and serve it with a side of pasta, which they were happy to do.
It was excellent.
For dessert, I kept things simple with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Overall, service was great, the food was excellent, and Sabatini’s made for a very good first dinner of the cruise.
A Little Casino Time
After dinner, it was off to the casino for a little gambling.
Unfortunately, Lady Luck wasn’t exactly waiting there to greet me.
That said, I managed to play for quite a while without investing much money, and any night where you can spend a few hours in the casino without doing serious damage to the bankroll is a win in my book.
We’re now sailing toward our first port of call, Princess Cays in the Bahamas, where we’re scheduled to arrive at 9:00 a.m. with passengers able to head ashore beginning around 10:00 a.m.
More from Princess Cays tomorrow, and as always, thanks for following along!
Regal Princess Daily Planner – Day 1
| Time | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 10:30am | Vibin' with DJ Brian | The Piazza, Deck 5 Mid |
| 10:30am | Meet Your Onboard Personal Trainers | Fitness Center, Deck 17 Aft |
| 10:30am | Lotus Spa, Salon & Enclave Tours & Sign-Ups | Lotus Spa, Deck 5 Fwd |
| 11:00am | Accessorize Your Medallions! | Princess Photo, Deck 6 Mid |
| 11:00am | Guess The Weight | Fine Arts Gallery, Deck 7 Fwd |
| 11:30am | Live Music with The Heartbreakers Duo | The Piazza, Deck 5 Mid |
| 11:30am | Dining Reservation Inquiries | Sabatini's Italian Trattoria, Deck 5 Fwd |
| 12:15pm | Live Music with Guitarist Luis | Wheelhouse Bar, Deck 7 Aft |
| 12:30pm | Guitar & Vocals with Arma Gideon | Fountain Pool, Deck 16 Mid |
| 12:30pm | Vibin' with DJ Brian | The Piazza, Deck 5 Mid |
| 12:30pm | EFFY Sneak Peak Exclusive | The Shops: EFFY Jewelry, Deck 7 Mid |
| 1:15pm | Live Music with Dale Duo | The Piazza, Deck 5 Mid |
| 1:15pm | Live Music with Vivace Strings Duo | Wheelhouse Bar, Deck 7 Aft |
| 1:30pm | Live Music with Arma Gideon | Fountain Pool, Deck 16 Mid |
| 2:15pm | Live Jazz with your House Band | Wheelhouse Bar, Deck 7 Aft |
| 2:15pm | Live Music with Trumpet player Yurii | The Piazza, Deck 5 Mid |
| 2:30pm | Sailaway Kickoff with DJ Brian | Fountain Pool, Deck 16 Mid |
| 3:00pm | SailAway Celebration | Fountain Pool, Deck 16 Mid |
| 3:00pm | Live Music with Solo Pianist Tiana | The Piazza, Deck 5 Mid |
| 3:00pm | Pain-Free with Acupuncture Seminar | Lotus Spa, Deck 5 Fwd |
| 3:30pm | Caribbean Breeze Sailaway Party | Fountain Pool, Deck 16 Mid |
| 3:30pm | Caribbean Marketplace | The Shops: Gifts, Deck 7 Mid |
| 4:00pm | Live Music with Vivace Strings Duo | The Piazza, Deck 5 Mid |
| 4:00pm | Meridian Bay Grand Opening | The Shops: Accessories, Deck 7 Mid |
| 4:00pm | Iris Photography Showcase: Join Us! | Princess Photo, Deck 6 Mid |
| 4:30pm | Win Up to $500 in Spa Treatments | Princess Live!, Deck 7 Mid |
| 4:30pm | Art Scavenger Hunt | Fine Arts Gallery, Deck 7 Fwd |
| 5:00pm | Live Music with Solo Pianist Tiana | Crooners Bar, Deck 7 Mid |
| 5:00pm | Preowned Rolex collection Unveiling | The Shops: Watches, Deck 7 Mid |
| 5:00pm | Chanel Beauty & Fragrances Event | The Shops: Beauty, Deck 7 Mid |
| 5:00pm | Guess the Carat Weight | Princess Insider, Deck 7 Fwd |
| 5:00pm | Elevate Your Voyage with Superior Sound! | Princess Photo, Deck 6 Mid |
| 5:15pm | Get the Lift You've Been Looking For | Lotus Spa, Deck 5 Fwd |
| 5:15pm | Live Music with Vivace Strings Duo | Wheelhouse Bar, Deck 7 Aft |
| 5:15pm | Mimosa Meet and Greet | Fine Arts Gallery, Deck 7 Fwd |
| 5:30pm | Acupuncture Walk in Clinic | Lotus Spa, Deck 5 Fwd |
| 5:30pm | Sail Away Reception at Effy | The Shops: EFFY Jewelry, Deck 7 Mid |
| 6:00pm | Guitar & Vocals with Arma Gideon | The Piazza, Deck 5 Mid |
| 6:00pm | Welcome Aboard Trivia | Princess Live!, Deck 7 Mid |
| 6:00pm | First-Time Player Welcome Bonus | Princess Casino, Deck 6 Fwd |
| 6:00pm | PhotoStudio & Walkaround Experience | Princess Photo, Deck 6 Mid |
| 6:00pm | Casual Fun Portraits! | Regal Princess, Deck 5 Mid |
| 6:15pm | Watercolor Fountain Fantasy | Fountain Pool, Deck 16 Mid |
| 6:15pm | Live Jazz with your House Band | Wheelhouse Bar, Deck 7 Aft |
| 7:00pm | Country Music Quiz | Princess Live!, Deck 7 Mid |
| 7:00pm | Live Music with Solo Pianist Tiana | Crooners Bar, Deck 7 Mid |
| 7:00pm | Showtime: Dance With Me | Princess Theater, Deck 7 Fwd |
| 7:15pm | Live Music with The Heartbreakers Duo | Wheelhouse Bar, Deck 7 Aft |
| 7:45pm | Piazza Showcase with Love on Top Cast | The Piazza, Deck 5 Mid |
| 7:45pm | Country Music with Static | The Piazza, Deck 5 Mid |
| 8:00pm | Art Raffle | Fine Arts Gallery, Deck 7 Fwd |
| 8:00pm | Laugh Lounge: Cyrus Steele | Vista Lounge, Deck 7 Aft |
| 8:00pm | Game Show: Survey It! | Princess Live!, Deck 7 Mid |
| 8:00pm | Scratch Card Special | Princess Casino, Deck 6 Fwd |
| 8:00pm | Effy Boutique Welcome Aboard Raffle | The Shops: EFFY Jewelry, Deck 7 Mid |
| 8:00pm | Tag Heuer New Collection Unveiling | The Shops: Watches, Deck 7 Mid |
| 8:15pm | Live Music with The Heartbreakers Duo | Wheelhouse Bar, Deck 7 Aft |
| 8:30pm | Watercolor Fountain Fantasy | Fountain Pool, Deck 16 Mid |
| 8:30pm | Club Piazza with DJ Brian | The Piazza, Deck 5 Mid |
| 9:00pm | Effy Collector's Club Giveaway | The Shops: EFFY Jewelry, Deck 7 Mid |
| 9:00pm | Showtime: Dance With Me | Princess Theater, Deck 7 Fwd |
| 9:00pm | Welcome Aboard Karaoke | Princess Live!, Deck 7 Mid |
| 9:15pm | Laugh Lounge: Cyrus Steele | Vista Lounge, Deck 7 Aft |
| 9:15pm | Piano and Vocal Entertainer Don Juan | Wheelhouse Bar, Deck 7 Aft |
| 9:45pm | Live Music with Static | The Piazza, Deck 5 Mid |
| 10:30pm | Laugh Lounge: Cyrus Steele | Vista Lounge, Deck 7 Aft |
| 10:30pm | Hot Latin Nites Party with Dale Duo | The Piazza, Deck 5 Mid |
| 11:00pm | Over $600,000 Paradise Lotto Draw | Princess Casino, Deck 6 Fwd |
| 11:00pm | 20s & 30s Get-Together | Vista Lounge, Deck 7 Aft |
| 11:00pm | Club Princess with DJ Brian | Vista Lounge, Deck 7 Aft |






