Princess Cruises delays the unveiling of its biggest ship ever

You'll have to wait a little longer to sail on the biggest Princess Cruises ship ever.

On Wednesday, the world's fifth-largest cruise line canceled the inaugural voyage of its much-awaited, 21-deck-high Sun Princess, citing a delay in the ship's delivery from the Italian shipyard that has been building it.

The 4,300-passenger vessel was scheduled to debut on Feb. 8 with a 10-night inaugural sailing out of Barcelona. It'll now begin operations for paying passengers 10 days later on Feb. 18.

The new inaugural sailing of Sun Princess scheduled for that day will be a 10-night voyage out of Civitavecchia, Italy — the port for Rome.

"We understand that this news is disappointing, and we share in that disappointment," John Padgett, Princess president, said in a statement accompanying the announcement. "We recognize the anticipation that surrounded this sailing, and we sincerely apologize for the inconvenience this cancellation causes."

Princess didn't give a reason for the delay in the ship's delivery, which will affect thousands of travelers booked on its first sailing. But such delays are typically the result of vessels not being completely finished on time.

Such delays are more common with vessels such as Sun Princess that are the first in an all-new series of ships. Such vessels often have features on board that are new for the shipyards constructing them.

Under development for more than six years, Sun Princess is the first of the line's new Sphere Class of vessels, which will be significantly bigger than previous Princess ships and offer several notable new-for-the-line features.

Among the most notable new offerings, Sun Princess will be the first Princess ship with suites that come with exclusive access to a private restaurant, lounge and sun deck — part of an effort to draw more upscale customers to the brand.

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Additionally, Sun Princess will offer an innovative new type of "cabana cabin" along the ship's extra-wide 10th deck that will come with access to a private deck area. Plus, the top deck of the ship will get some unusual-for-Princess sizzle with the addition of a glass-dome-topped pool area that will transform into a nightspot after the sun goes down.

Related: Princess is getting creative with its newest ship

At 175,000 gross tons, Sun Princess will be about 21% bigger than the largest ships currently in the Princess fleet. It'll be able to hold about 17% more passengers than the biggest Princess ships.

Its arrival will mark the first time Princess has launched a new class of ships in nearly 11 years.

Under construction in Italy

Sun Princess is being built at the Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy, which has a long history of building cruise ships for Princess, Cunard, MSC Cruises and several other brands.

Princess on Wednesday said passengers booked on the canceled inaugural sailing of Sun Princess will receive a full refund of the cruise fare they paid and refunds for any additional onboard services that they pre-purchased for the sailing.

Additionally, they'll get a 50% future cruise credit they can use on another Princess voyage and a credit of up to $200 per person toward the cost of change fees related to their air travel plans. The future cruise credit must be applied to a cruise booking by Nov. 30 and is only good toward sailings between now and Dec. 31, 2025.

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