As a seasoned Princess cruiser, I was a bit nervous about sailing on Star Princess for the first time. I was worried it would be completely different to the other three Princess ships I’ve experienced in the past four years.

But I'm delighted to report Star Princess is pure Princess Cruises – with a twist. The onboard experience is more modern than other Princess ships, and the product is premium luxury rather than premium which Princess customers are more accustomed to.

Now, I've not had the chance to sail on Star Princess's sister ship – Sun Princess – which launched last year, so the standout features may not come as a surprise to agent readers who have already sailed on Sphere class. However, I would say the use of light in the Piazza is amazing – the views of Glacier Bay when the ship goes to Alaska are going to be incredible.

The Dome at the ship's bow is an incredible space; pool area by day, solarium by night. We saw live music there. Although there's glass everywhere, it does not feel hot during the day. Beforehand, I thought some of the areas were going to be too busy, but there are so many venues that nowhere feels crowded.

Credit: Martin Kindred-Langdon

Princess and P&O Cruises are my biggest sellers. If I'm being honest, the main reason is that I've experienced both products quite a bit. These fam trips really do make a lot of difference and really helps me increase my business.

I think a lot of people I sell cruise holidays to would enjoy Star Princess. Maybe not traditional cruisers or ones seeking a small-ship experience, but a lot of people I sell cruises to would love this.

During the cruise, I tried to post something on my social channels every day, but I don't check whether I've had any enquiries until I get home. Now I've been on Star Princess, I can really bring it to life when I speak to customers, or when I post about it on social media.

'It's been an amazing opportunity'

It's been amazing to have this opportunity. I'm not sure why I was given a cabin, but Travel Counsellors and Princess have a closed Facebook group and I'm quite active in there. I often help other Travel Counsellors out with any problems they have. Because I've sailed on four Princess ships now, I give information that might not be easy to find. Maybe I was picked ahead of other agents because of that?

The other night, I was having dinner in Crown Grill and one of the staff recognised me from when I sailed on Sky Princess in April. I instantly recognised her too. It was really lovely to see her. Her name is Maria.

Credit: Princess Cruises

The top deck on Sun Princess was scaled back after it launched, but on Star Princess, there are pickleball and basketball courts in that space.

In April 2024, Princess announced it would postpone the launch of Star Princess for two months, cancelling nine departures as a result of that decision. I think it was the right choice to delay the launch and make sure that everything was in good working order.

We had a Q&A session with the captain. They’ve clearly learnt from the Sun Princess experience and done things differently with Star Princess. It feels like Star Princess has been sailing for six months.

I'm looking forward to getting back to my desk. Because we can build our own Atol-protected packages at Travel Counsellors, we can create twin-centre packages or multi-centre ones with Star Princess at the centre of it. There really are so many opportunities with Star going to Alaska next summer.