Princess Cruises Invites You to Become a Godparent

It's quite an honor to be godmother to a cruise ship, one that is usually reserved for celebrities, sports luminaries, philanthropists, and even royalty. That usually leaves most of us out, at least until now. To celebrate the new name of its ship Ocean Princess (formerly Tahitian Princess), Princess Cruises is extending an open invitation to anyone wishing to become an honorary godparent for the vessel, with the first-ever virtual christening. Yes, even men are included.

In a new twist on the time-honored tradition, the naming ceremony will occur completely online, at the Virtual Christening website. Each new godparent will trigger a $1 donation from Princess to the New England Aquarium, a global leader in ocean exploration and marine conservation, up to $25,000. One of the small ships of Princess, Ocean Princess, fresh out of a 2-week drydock, departed Singapore this week on the first voyage with her new name. The virtual christening will run throughout the ship’s 16-day Southeast Asia cruise, ending on Dec. 18.

That's a potential 25,000 godparents for Ocean Princess, one of Princess’ fleet of small ships, which also includes Royal Princess and Pacific Princess. Offering a classic and intimate cruise experience, each small ship carries around 680 passengers and travels to more remote destinations around the world. That just proves you don’t have to be the world’s largest cruise ship to have the most godparents of any vessel afloat.

“At the end of her current cruise, we hope to have a huge group of honorary godparents for Ocean Princess,” said Jan Swartz, Princess executive vice president. “In this digital age, we wanted to design a way that all our fans worldwide could be part of the celebration. But not only do we want to entertain people with this fun approach, we also want people to think about our oceans, and in doing so support the important work of the New England Aquarium.”

In addition to virtually christening the ship and becoming an honorary godparent, participants will be able explore the following areas online:

• Honorary Godparents: Names of Ocean Princess’ honorary godparents
• Ocean Princess Webcam: Live web cam from the ship
• Ocean Princess Itineraries: Link to Ocean Princess’ extensive list of itineraries
• Ocean Princess Drydock Photo Journal: Pictorial of the ship’s drydock in Singapore
• About Ocean Princess: Details about Ocean Princess and her offerings
• The Small Ships of Princess: Information about the small ships of Princess
• About the New England Aquarium: Information about the non-profit organization

During the ship’s recent drydock at the Keppel Shipyard in Singapore, the Ocean Princess name was placed on the bow and throughout the vessel. The ship also received new fuel-efficient silicone paint on its hull, and interior enhancements including new upholstery, carpet and flooring. The ship was renamed Ocean Princess to more accurately represent her global range of itineraries. Following its inaugural Treasures of the Southeast Asia cruise from Singapore to Shanghai, Ocean Princess will offer a season of unique Asia, India and Africa sailings, followed by a summer of European voyages. Further information about Princess is available through a professional travel agent, by visiting Princess Cruises.

Join Cruise Diva as a virtual godparent and enjoy the virtual bottle smash online as you sip a virtual toast of virtual champagne to Ocean Princess!

Don't let the Travel Bloggers' Caravan pass you by!

Today's Caravan stop is NovelDestinations.com, where Shannon McKenna Schmidt & Joni Rendon have a Literary Travel Prize Pack (a tote bag, book, travel kit, note cards, tea, bookmarks, and a keychain) for a lucky winner.

TheBrooklynNomad.com is tomorrow's Caravan stop. Andrew Hickey will be awarding Imagine: A Vagabond Story by Grant Lingel and $50 Magellan's gift certificate.