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| Captain Arrigo on the left and Cruise Director Cole on the right |
Today’s highlight was the “Meet the Captain” event, something I always look forward to on a cruise. There’s something special about hearing directly from the person who guides the ship — the stories, the history, and the little glimpses into life on the bridge.
Our current master of the Star Princess is Captain Paolo Arrigo, and many people immediately recognized his name. He was the Captain on The Real Love Boat television series that aired in 2022, which brought a fun bit of pop‑culture charm to Princess Cruises. But his real story goes much deeper than TV credits.
Captain Arrigo shared that his connection to Princess is truly a family legacy. His grandfather joined the company as a chef back in 1965, at a time when the fleet — and the industry — looked very different. His father followed the same path, also cooking for Princess. So in many ways, Paolo grew up with the sea woven into his life. He laughed as he admitted he enjoys cooking too, but ultimately his dream was to sail the ship, not just feed the people on it. And here he is, carrying the family tradition forward in his own way.
He also gave an excellent explanation about the recent decision to skip Mazatlán and adjust our route to skirt the hurricane. He walked us through the maps, the timing, and the complexity of the storm system. Seeing the data laid out so clearly made it easy to understand why the change was necessary — safety first, always. It was reassuring to hear directly from the person responsible for navigating us through it.
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| Our position on October 8th at 8:00 PM |
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| October 9 8:00 AM almost through the storm |
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| October 10 8:00 AM finally in safe calm water |
At today’s event, Captain Paolo Arrigo shared another fascinating chapter of his Princess story — one that took him off the bridge and into the world of innovation. For two years, he was pulled from the high seas and brought into the Corporate Office to help develop what would become one of Princess’s biggest technological leaps: the Medallion.
He joked that he was “a bit of a geek,” but admitted he had no idea how to program. That’s where the Princess tech team came in. They understood the engineering and software; he understood the ship — its safety, its operations, and the way guests and crew move through daily life onboard. Together, they built something that blended both worlds.
Hearing him describe that collaboration made the Medallion feel even more impressive. It wasn’t just a tech project — it was shaped by someone who knows the heartbeat of the ship.
Events like this remind me why I enjoy cruising so much. It’s not just the destinations — it’s the people who make the journey possible, and the stories behind them.
