Princess to send newest, hottest ship to China

Et tu, Princess?

The California-based line today revealed that its newest, hottest ship will be devoted to Chinese travelers instead of North Americans.

The as-yet-unnamed vessel, currently under construction at the Fincantieri shipyard in Italy, will be based year-round in Shanghai and cater to a local Chinese market when it debuts in the summer of 2017, the line said.

The announcement comes as rival Royal Caribbean moves one of its newest, hottest ships -- the six-month-old, 4,180-passenger Quantum of the Seas -- to Shanghai year-round to serve the Chinese market. The Miami-based operator also announced in March that it'll send a second new ship, the soon-to-debut Ovation of the Seas, to China in 2016.

Norwegian Cruise Line executives also have discussed sending one of the company's newest ships to Asia.

The moves are a blow to North American cruisers who are accustomed to getting the newest, hottest ships from North America-based lines in their home markets. But the industry increasingly is looking to Asia for growth, and a growing number of lines are concluding that the secret to success in the region is in the deployment of new ships.

"Deploying our next new ship in China underscores our strong commitment to growing the China cruise market," Princess president Jan Swartz says in a statement accompanying today's announcement.

Based on the design of the recently unveiled Royal Princess and Regal Princess, the new Princess vessel destined for China will be the first international luxury vessel designed and built specifically for Chinese passengers, the line says (click through the carousel at the top of this story for a deck-by-deck look at the Regal Princess).

Princess says the ship will feature a number of new innovations customized for Chinese cruisers.

Princess began basing a ship in China on a seasonal basis just last year with the deployment of the Sapphire Princess in Shanghai. The vessel will return to the city in June for a second season of sailings that will last through October.

Among other lines shifting capacity to Asia to target local markets are Costa Cruises, which has been expanding rapidly in China. Princess also has been expanding in Japan with cruises aimed at the local market.