In late February 2023, Princess introduced a slate of new gelato-based premium desserts adorned with rich and decadent pastry, candy, and sauce. While reaction to the desserts has ranged from excitement and anticipation to skepticism and downright horror, the reasoning for these new offerings has been subject to much speculation:
Are they an effort to gin up business to ship medical centers which have seen a drop in revenue due to fewer Covid patients?
Is Princess trying to nurture more of a presence on social media sites with these “Insta worthy” creations?
Or are they an attempt to entice younger passengers to the line? Or to encourage multi-generational cruising? I can totally see grandparents feeding these to their grandchildren and then immediately returning them to their parents while thinking, “karma.”
Who knows. But I choose to believe someone at Princess overheard my declaration that “it’s impossible for a dessert to be too sweet” and decided to give it the old college try.
Yes! Two premium desserts per day are included with the Plus package and unlimited premium desserts are included with the Premier package. For more details on the current Princess cruise package options and what they include, go here:
If you’ve booked “Princess Standard,” and not the Plus or Premier packages, you can still pay à la carte to enjoy the premium desserts. The à la carte price is $12 plus an extra $2 to add a shot of liquor.
Depending on ship, the premium desserts can be ordered at Gelateria, Swirls, or Coffee and Cones. Here’s the menu…
Here’s the premium dessert menu with a description of each of the six options:
For a sugar rush powerful enough to fuel your dream of writing the next great American novel?
For enough calories to sustain you for the rest of the month once you disembark because you accidentally spent your food budget at the ship’s casino?
For the value? Because if you purchase one, you can get a shot of your favorite liquor for only $2?
Or because the combination of gelato, pastry, candy, and sauce is reason enough!
Whatever your reason, have an extra one for me! (Just note that I will not be held liable if your pores gradually crystalize and your entire body transforms into a giant rock candy.) And with that…
Class Dismissed!
Homework (10 points): Share your thoughts on these new desserts to the comments. Have you tried them yet? Would you like to try them? Then read my review of the new Xponential fitness classes being offered on Princess ships (because, trust me, you’re going to need them!).
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