Princess to reprise first voyage to Mexico

It's nostalgia time at Princess Cruises, which is turning 50 years old in 2015.

The line this week announced it will celebrate the anniversary with a special Mexico sailing that will recall its very first voyage in 1965.

The 14-day trip on the 670-passenger Pacific Princess will kick off Dec. 3, 2015, exactly 50 years to the day after the line's original ship, Princess Patricia, set sail on the first Princess cruise.

The same length as that original voyage, the sailing will offer a blend of ports from the maiden itinerary such as Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlán and Manzanillo with some newer destinations such as La Paz and Loreto.

Princess says passengers will be treated to an array of activities and entertainment commemorating half a century of Princess cruises and also will be joined by surprise guests.

The voyage will open for booking May 13. Fares start at $1,699 per person, based on double occupancy.

Launched in 1965 with just one ship, Princess Cruises is now the world's third largest cruise line with 17 vessels. The line took off in the 1970s and 1980s in part because of the success of The Love Boat, a top-rated TV show that was set on an earlier version of the Pacific Princess. That ship is now being dismantled at a scrapyard in Turkey. See our farewell photo tour of the vessel.

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