Princess Cruises has announced the sale of two of its ships, Sun Princess and Sea Princess.

While the Carnival Corporation-owned brand did not disclose the buyers, reports suggest Peace Boat of Japan is taking Sun Princess.

The sale of the vessels is in line with plan unveiled by Carnival to accelerate the removal of less efficient ships from its fleet.

“Sun Princess and Sea Princess contributed to significant growth in Australian cruising,” said Princess Cruises president, Jan Swartz.

“Both ships defined the premium cruise experience with Australians and New Zealanders spending close to 14 million nights aboard these ships.

“While it is never easy to say goodbye to any ship in our fleet, this will allow us to deploy newer ships enhancing our offerings for Australia cruisers and focus on bringing into service exciting newbuilds like the upcoming delivery of Enchanted Princess.”

The first ship in the Sun Class, Sun Princess was introduced in 1995 debuting in the Caribbean and was among the largest ships in the world at the time.

The 2,000-guest vessel also sailed in Alaska and Panama Canal, among other destinations, before being homeported in Australia in 2007.

Sun Princess also helped us open the Japanese market in 2013 as the first foreign-flagged cruise ship to offer cruises designed specifically for the Japanese.

The 2,000-guest Sea Princess became synonymous with World Cruises, having completed six full world cruises since 2013.

During her time based in Australia, Sea Princess travelled the equivalent of 35 times around the world.

Prior to joining Sun Princess in Australia, Sea Princess sailed in Europe and Alaska as well as the Caribbean, including serving as a homeport ship in Barbados in the mid- to late-2000s.

Due to the imminent departure of these two ships from the fleet, Princess Cruises will cancel published itineraries which include:

• Sun Princess sailings from December 28th this year through to August 14th, 2021.
• Sea Princess sailings from December 23rd this year through November 9th, 2021.

Guests with bookings will be notified, and along with their travel advisors, will receive information on how to book another Princess Cruise when operations resume.

Those Guests who prefer a refund will be accommodated.