By the Caribbean Journal staff

Cruise line Princess Cruises is expanding its offering to Mexico for 2019 and 2020, Caribbean Journal has learned.

Highlights of the new offerings to Mexico will include the introduction of one of Princess’ newest ships, Royal Princess, for her first full season in Los Angeles.

Royal Princess will sail 27 voyages including seven-day Mexico cruises that feature overnights in Cabo San Lucas on ever five-day Cabo sailing.

Princess will also remain the only cruise line to sail year round out of San Francisco, with roundtrip 10-day Mexico cruises on Grand Princess.

“Sailing the waters of Mexico honors the heritage of Princess cruising, with our first voyage in 1965 to the Mexican Riviera,” said Jan Swartz, Princess Cruises president. “Now, we provide guests more opportunities to experience the best of the region through culinary partnerships and immersive shore excursions, all while enjoying longer stays in port.”

The company’s enhanced shore excursions will include a focus on culinary adventures featuring local Mexican cuisine, particularly in Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan and Puerto Vallarta.

“Developing excursions for Princess guests presented a unique opportunity to provide exposure to local chefs and flavors from Latin America that can only be found on the west coast,” said author Bill Esparza, who developed the excursions. “I wanted to present guests with new ingredients, off the beaten path experiences and personalities from around the region to provide the most authentic look into this part of the world.”