Sun-class cruise ship

This article is about the cruise ship class. For the class of steam locomotives, see GWR Sun Class.
Pacific Explorer (as Dawn Princess) in Ketchikan, Alaska
Class overview
NameSun class
BuildersFincantieri – Cantieri Navali Italiani S.p.A.
Operators
Preceded byCrown class
Succeeded byGrand class
CostUS$380 million
Built1995–2000
Planned4
Completed4
Active3
Laid up1
General characteristics
TypeCruise ship
Tonnage77,741
Length260.0 m (853 ft 0 in)
Beam32.2 m (105 ft 8 in)
Draught7.9 m (25 ft 11 in)
Decks16 (10 publicly accessible)
Propulsion4 Sulzer diesel engines driving 2 shafts
Speed21.4 knots (39.6 km/h; 24.6 mph)
Capacity1,950–2,272 passengers
Crew900

The Sun class is a class of cruise ships originally built for and operated by Princess Cruises and now operated by P&O Cruises Australia, Peace Boat, Seajets and Cheng Zhen Cruises. The vessels in the class were designed and constructed by Fincantieri Cantieri Navali Italiani in Italy. The first Sun-class vessel, Sun Princess (now Pacific World), entered service in 1995 and the last, Ocean Princess (now Queen of the Oceans) entered service in 2000. At the time of launch, the Sun class was amongst the largest cruise ships in the world, although this has since been surpassed.

The four ships are effectively identical, with the only notable exception being the design of the bridge wings; Pacific World and Pacific Explorer having exterior bridge wings, Dream and Queen of the Oceans having enclosed bridge wings.

Ships

Ship Built Gross tonnage Flag Notes Image
Pacific World 1995 77,499 tons  Panama In service for Peace Boat.
Sun Princess from 1995 to 2020.
Pacific Explorer 1997 77,499 tons  United Kingdom In service for P&O Cruises Australia.
Dawn Princess from 1997 to 2017.
Dream 1998 77,499 tons  Liberia In service for Cheng Zhen Cruises.
Sea Princess from 1998 to 2003 and 2005 to 2020, Adonia from 2003 to 2005, Charming from 2020 to 2023.
Queen of the Oceans 2000 77,499 tons  Bermuda Laid up since 2020, future unknown.[1]
Ocean Princess from 2000 to 2002, Oceana from 2002 to 2020

References

  1. ^ Bailey, Jordan (22 July 2020). "P&O's Former Oceana Acquired By Greek Ferry Operator". Cruise Capital. Retrieved 23 July 2020.