In January 1998, the then-unnamed ship was ordered as part of a two-ship order made by Princess with Fincantieri, with each ship costing US$425 million. The two 109,000 GT "Grand"-class ships were scheduled to be delivered in 2001, and slotted to sail in the Caribbean from Port Everglades year-round. Later, in October 2000, Princess announced "Star Princess" would instead be deployed to Los Angeles for Mexican Riviera cruises following her delivery, with Alaska itineraries during the summers. "Star Princess" would become the first then-dubbed "mega-ship" ever to be homeported in Los Angeles and also cruise from the West Coast on a full-time basis.