Princess Cruises takes to the airways on Pandora

Being a “first” in the cruise industry isn’t so easy these days.  Between Flow-Riders, Blue Men, cantilevered whirlpools and plexiglass waterslides, being original can be a challenge if you’re a cruise line.

Today, Princess Cruises ups the ante and becomes the first cruise line to host a streaming internet radio station via Pandora.  The new Princess Cruises Radio ) features three musical options – the “Relax” station playing soothing easy listening music, the “Rejuvenate” station with more lively, up-tempo sounds, and the “Escape Completely” station for a blend of both relaxing and energizing tracks. Listeners can choose which option they prefer by sliding a controller shaped like a Princess ship.

The music featured on the new Princess station is wide-ranging, but the playlist is heavily inspired by the sounds of the 60s, 70s and 80s eras that evoke memories of good times for many of the line’s passengers – music that reminds them of positive life events and celebrations. Artists might include John Mayer, Bonnie Rait, Bill Withers, Michael Bublé, Marvin Gaye, Elton John, Paul McCartney, and many others. Pandora’s own algorithm then expands the playlist to include an infinite stream of similar songs.

“We know that music is a powerful way to help people relax and escape into a different mindset,” said Jan Swartz, Princess Cruises executive vice president. “And so it seemed quite fitting for Princess to create an entire radio station around music that does just that.”

Pandora is free, personalized radio streamed over the Internet that helps listeners discover new music mixed in with music they already know. Pandora is only available in the U.S. because of royalty and licensing guidelines determined by artists, labels and publishers.

Here’s one that I love for a zen moments: Princess Cruises has launched a series of a videos available through the Pandora station called “Escape Breaks” that offer visitors brief, relaxing cruise-related moments – from watching a sunset to seeing an Alaskan glacier calving into the sea. 

So let’s see…Princess Cruises has now covered radio, online video and of course, reruns of the Love Boat television shows are floating around somewhere, too.  

Source: Princess Cruises
Photo credit:  Sherry Laskin