New California Coast cruises aboard Sapphire Princess
will call in picturesque San Francisco.
Photo © Aaron Saunders
With Norwegian Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean both pulling out of the Mexican Riviera market in 2011 and 2012, the West Coast has had a rough string of bad luck. The reduction in ships serving this popular winter getaway, coupled with the loss of several ships on the summer runs to Alaska, has meant the West Coast will have fewer than eight ships operating on its shores year-round.
It's not all bad news, though: Princess Cruises is poised to announce three "California Coastal" cruises in September of 2011 and April of 2012 to act as bookends for Sapphire Princess's Mexican Rivera sailings.
Sailing roundtrip from the Port of Los Angeles in San Pedro, Sapphire Princess will offer a 7-day itinerary with calls in Santa Barbara, San Francisco, San Diego,and Ensenada, Mexico before returning to Los Angeles. Pricing and exact arrival and departure details have not yet been announced by the line.
While these cruises have yet to appear on the Princess.com website, it seems likely that these will be offered in addition to the standard Pacific Coastal cruises that have become a staple of the spring and fall seasons, and usually sail between Los Angeles and Vancouver, or vice-versa.
So why isn't the West Coast as popular as the East Coast? A lot of it has to do with the Jones Act, which requires ships operating round-trip from a US port to call in a "distant foreign port" before returning to US soil. This is why Alaska cruises operating out of Seattle must call in Victoria, BC for a mere six hours - legally, the ship cannot return to the US without stopping in Canada first.
Unlike the East Coast, which has Bermuda, the Bahamas, Mexico, and a veritable plethora of Caribbean islands in which to sail to during the chilly winter months, the West Coast has Mexico and Hawaii as its main options. Hawaiian cruises that are roundtrip Los Angeles or San Diego tend to be at least two weeks in length, and week-long Mexican Riviera roundtrips feature the same three ports: Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan, and Puerto Vallarta.
Because of this, lines aren't able to vary their itineraries by much - meaning if you've done the Mexican Riviera before, the itinerary will likely be the same regardless of line. Competition on these runs are fierce.
Last year, when the Swine Flu made Mexico an unpopular destination, ships like Mariner of the Seas found themselves sailing all the way to Victoria, BC in order to satisfy the Jones Act. Although many passengers enjoyed this re-routed and decidedly less sun-drenched cruise, lines indicated this sort of itinerary would be unprofitable - which is why it's nice to see Princess dipping their figurative toes in the water, if only for a few sailings.
Full details regarding the new sailings on Sapphire Princess have yet to appear on Princess's website. We'll be sure to notify readers once pricing and availability have been released.
Sailing roundtrip from the Port of Los Angeles in San Pedro, Sapphire Princess will offer a 7-day itinerary with calls in Santa Barbara, San Francisco, San Diego,and Ensenada, Mexico before returning to Los Angeles. Pricing and exact arrival and departure details have not yet been announced by the line.
While these cruises have yet to appear on the Princess.com website, it seems likely that these will be offered in addition to the standard Pacific Coastal cruises that have become a staple of the spring and fall seasons, and usually sail between Los Angeles and Vancouver, or vice-versa.
So why isn't the West Coast as popular as the East Coast? A lot of it has to do with the Jones Act, which requires ships operating round-trip from a US port to call in a "distant foreign port" before returning to US soil. This is why Alaska cruises operating out of Seattle must call in Victoria, BC for a mere six hours - legally, the ship cannot return to the US without stopping in Canada first.
Unlike the East Coast, which has Bermuda, the Bahamas, Mexico, and a veritable plethora of Caribbean islands in which to sail to during the chilly winter months, the West Coast has Mexico and Hawaii as its main options. Hawaiian cruises that are roundtrip Los Angeles or San Diego tend to be at least two weeks in length, and week-long Mexican Riviera roundtrips feature the same three ports: Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan, and Puerto Vallarta.
Because of this, lines aren't able to vary their itineraries by much - meaning if you've done the Mexican Riviera before, the itinerary will likely be the same regardless of line. Competition on these runs are fierce.
Last year, when the Swine Flu made Mexico an unpopular destination, ships like Mariner of the Seas found themselves sailing all the way to Victoria, BC in order to satisfy the Jones Act. Although many passengers enjoyed this re-routed and decidedly less sun-drenched cruise, lines indicated this sort of itinerary would be unprofitable - which is why it's nice to see Princess dipping their figurative toes in the water, if only for a few sailings.
Full details regarding the new sailings on Sapphire Princess have yet to appear on Princess's website. We'll be sure to notify readers once pricing and availability have been released.
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