Dawn Princess in Ketchikan, Alaska |
|
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Sun Class |
| Builders: | Fincantieri Ship Yard |
| Operators: | Princess Cruises, P&O Cruises |
| Succeeded by: | Grand Class |
| Subclasses: | Coral Princess, Island Princess |
| Built: | 1995–2003 |
| Planned: | 4 |
| Completed: | 4 Ships (not including Coral and Island Princess) |
| Active: | 6 Ships |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Sun Class |
| Type: | Cruise ship |
| Tonnage: | 77,741–91,627 |
| Length: | 260.0 metres (856 feet) Coral and Island=964 ft |
| Beam: | 32.2 metres (106 feet) Coral and Island=106 ft |
| Draught: | 7.9 metres (26 feet) |
| Propulsion: | 4 Sulzer Diesels driving 2 shafts |
| Speed: | 21.4 knots |
| Complement: | 900 crew, 1,950-2,272 passengers |
The Sun class is a class of cruise ships operated primarily by Princess Cruises, a subsidiary of Carnival. The class was designed and its component vessels constructed by Fincantieri Cantieri Navali Italiani in Italy. The first Sun class vessel, Sun Princess, entered service in 1995 and the last, Ocean Princess, entered service in the year 2000. The Coral and Island Princess do not have the same plans as the other ships, and they were built in France. Princess classifies them as Sun Class because they are much smaller than the Grand Class ships. All ships classified as Sun Class can fit through the Panama Canal, while all Grand Class ships cannot.
At the time of launch, the Sun class was amongst the largest cruise ships in the world, although this has since been surpassed many times. The vessels are promoted as; "big ship choice and small ship feel".