Today marks 200 days until the 3,560-guest Royal Princess arrives back in Southampton. The ship was named by HRH the Duchess of Cambridge in June 2013 and has travelled for over 500,000 miles since her launch. Royal Princess will sail on a series of round Britain cruises next spring and summer.

The ship will arrive on May 1, 2018, and be fully equipped with 'Ocean Medallion' technology. The medallion, which is the same size as a 10p piece, will automatically provide information to guests during their cruise to give a more personalised onboard experience.

#TheRoyalCountdown

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Notes to editors

Image attached and list of ship facts below

200 Days to Royal

3,560 passengers

141,000 tons

Total number of staterooms: 1,780

Godmother: Her Royal Highness, The Duchess of Cambridge

Inaugural cruise: June 16, 2013 in a Grand Mediterranean itinerary

Length: 1,083 feet long – the entire length of the Eiffel Tower

Height: 217 feet high (19 decks) – the same as 14 giraffes!

Width: 155 feet wide (including Sea Walk)

Draft: 28 feet

Top speed: 23 knots equal to 26.5 miles per hour

Transverse (sideways) thruster power: 15,000KW.  The original Love Boat, Pacific Princess had forward propulsion of 13,500KW.  So Royal Princess can go faster sideways than Pacific princess could travel forward.

During summer 2017, 273 hours of footage was captured by Wild Pictures for the next six episodes of ITV's The Cruise. The new series is due to air early 2018.

Over the years

In the month Royal Princess arrives back in Southampton the ship will celebrate five years in service.  During this time:

• More than 11 million cups of coffee have been served
• Over 100 million dishes have been washed
• 4 million beds have been made
• The ship has travelled more than 500,000 miles
• 5 million dinners have been served
• Welcomed 6.5 million guests up the gangway!