Princess Cruises to Debut Medallion Class on Island Princess in May 2018

The Ocean Medallion will debut aboard the Island Princess on May 16, 2018.

Princess Cruises announced Friday that the Island Princess will be its fourth cruise ship to feature the highly anticipated Ocean Medallion. 

The technology will debut aboard the Island Princess on May 16, 2018, just in time for the Alaska cruise season.
Carnival Corporation CEO Arnold Donald unveiled the next-gen wearable device at CES 2017 in Las Vegas last month. That's when it was announced that the technology would debut on Princess Cruises' Regal Princess Nov. 13, followed by the Royal Princess and Caribbean Princess in early 2018.

Medallion Class will be unveiled aboard the Island Princess during its seven-day Voyage of the Glaciers sailing between Vancouver and Anchorage.

The new Medallion Class is powered by the 1.8-ounce Ocean Medallion disc, which doesn't need to be turned on or off, nor charged and can be worn in a variety of ways or simply stored in a guest's pocket. 

"The Medallion, the centerpiece of the company’s One Cruise Experience Access Network, promises to streamline and expedite embarkation and disembarkation, open staterooms effortlessly upon approaching the stateroom door, locate friends and family aboard the ship, allow passengers to buy merchandise without credit cards, paper or even a transaction," writes TravelPulse editor-in-chief Tim Wood.

"As the leading cruise line in Alaska, it's fitting that our fourth ship to feature Medallion Class Ocean Vacations is Island Princess," Princess Cruises president Jan Swartz said in a statement. "Sailing on our most popular Voyage of the Glaciers itinerary, our guests will enjoy the best Alaska has to offer and enjoy an elevated cruise vacation experience."

Carnival Corporation plans to continue to test and evolve the technology aboard Princess Cruises' fleet before bringing it to some of its other cruise brands.