Cruise Lines Make Changes to Sailings as Hurricane Dorian Heads Toward Florida
by Daniel McCarthy /
Update Sept. 3, 3:00 p.m.
According to a statement, Port Miami has reopened on Tuesday afternoon.
Original report
Hurricane Dorian, which made landfall on the Bahamas on Monday as a historically powerful storm, is impacting all cruise line sailings in the area scheduled to sail, return, or depart this week.
The storm has already forced the closure of PortMiami, Port Everglades, and Port Canaveral, all of which closed sometime on Sept. 1. All three ports remain closed as Dorian heads toward Florida on Tuesday.
Here are the changes that cruise lines are making because of the storm.
Carnival Cruise Line
Carnival Cruise Line is making a number of changes to its scheduled sailings.
Carnival Ecstasy’s Sept. 5 sailing is still being evaluated. Its current sailing, which departed on Aug. 31, will no longer call at Nassau on Tuesday.
Carnival Elation’s Sept. 2 sailing out of Port Canaveral has been pushed until Sept. 5. The sailing will now be a two-day sailing with ports of call to be determined. Guests can cancel and get a 100% future cruise credit. Those who choose to sail will get a pro-rated refund of the cruise fare and any pre-purchases.
Carnival Horizon’s Sept. 1 out of PortMiami (which was closed on Sept. 1) has been pushed to Sept. 4, rescheduled for a three-day sailing with a call at Nassau on Sept. 5. Guests can cancel and receive a 100% future cruise credit. Those who choose to sail will get a 50% prorated refund of the cruise fare and pre-purchases, along with a 50% future cruise credit.
Carnival Liberty’s Sept. 2 sailing out of Port Canaveral has been canceled. All guests will received a full refund for cruise fare and any pre-purchased items.
Carnival Sunshine’s Sept. 2 sailing out of Charleston will no longer call at Half Moon Cay.
Carnival Victory’s Sept. 2 sailing of Miami is now scheduled to depart Sept. 4 and return Friday, Sept. 6, with a call at Key West on Sept. 5. Guests can cancel and get a 100% future cruise credit or stay onboard and receive a pro-rated refund of their cruise fare and any pre-purchases.
Disney Cruise Line
Disney Cruise Line said it will extend the current Disney Dream sailing, which was scheduled to return to Port Canaveral on Sept. 4, by one day, now returning on Sept. 5, as “it does not seem likely that Port Canaveral will be available for our return on Wednesday.”
Because of the delay, it has canceled the next sailing of Disney Dream. Guests are eligible for a full refund of their voyage fare and a 20% discount on a future cruise.
According to an update, Disney's private island Castaway Cay was spared the worst of Dorian.
"As forecasted, sustained winds on the island did not extend beyond tropical force strength and our Crew has returned to their living quarters after spending a few hours in our storm shelter yesterday. Our thoughts continue to be with the people in areas of The Bahamas that are being impacted by this storm and we stand ready to contribute to recovery efforts."
MSC Cruises
MSC Cruises is extending the current sailing of Armonia until Sept. 4 because of the storm. The ship’s next sailing will now depart on Sept. 4, with calls on Cozumel Friday, Sept. 6, and Costa Maya on Saturday, Sept. 7. Guests who were originally booked on the Sept. 2 MSC Armonia cruise and who choose to take the shortened cruise will be automatically refunded for two days of their cruise.
Norwegian Cruise Line
Norwegian Cruise Line’s Florida sailings have also been heavily impacted by Dorian.
Norwegian Breakaway’s Aug. 25 sailing, scheduled to return to PortMiami on Sept. 1, is now headed to New Orleans for disembarkation on Sept. 3. Norwegian is “in communication with all guests onboard and assisting with necessary travel arrangements to ensure a safe and timely return home.”
Breakaway’s Sept. 1 sailing has been canceled and all guests will receive a full refund.
Norwegian Sky’s Aug. 31 sailing is now scheduled to return to Miami on Sept. 5, as long as Port Miami reopens. Its Sept. 5 sailing is still on schedule, also pending the Port’s reopening.
Norwegian Sun’s Aug. 29 sailing, originally scheduled to return to Port Canaveral on Sept. 2, is now headed to New Orleans, where it will arrive on Sept. 3. The ship’s Sept. 2 sailing has been canceled and all guests will receive a full refund.
Right now, Sun’s Sept. 7 sailing is still scheduled to depart Port Canaveral.
Royal Caribbean International
Royal Caribbean is still assessing the damage to CocoCay, which has been closed since Wednesday, Aug. 28. It had planned to reopen the island on Sept. 4, but is still “not seeing the full picture.”
“Our team of experts is making their way there on Wednesday, which is when they’ll evaluate the extent of the damage. Currently, our hope is to be up and running on Saturday, Sept. 7, 2019, but we won’t really know if it’s ready for normal operation until the entire island is assessed,” Royal said on its website.
Royal Caribbean also announced a number of changes to sailings because of Hurricane Dorian.
Allure of the Seas’ Aug. 25 sailing has been extended two days, returning Sept. 4 instead of Sept. 1. It will have two days at sea before returning on Wednesday. The ship’s next sailing, originally scheduled to leave Ft. Lauderdale on Sept. 1, is now scheduled to depart on Sept. 4.
Empress of the Seas’ Aug. 24 sailing was also extended, and the ship is now scheduled to return to Miami on Sept. 4 instead of Sept. 1. The ship has added a call at Roatan and George Town, Grand Cayman. Its next sailing, scheduled for Sept. 1, will now depart Miami on Sept. 4.
Harmony of the Seas’ Aug. 25 sailing is also extended. The ship will not return to Port Canaveral on Sept. 5, with an additional two-day call at Cozumel and three days at sea added. Its Sept. 1 sailing will now leave Port Canaveral on Sept. 5 and return Sept. 8.
Majesty of the Seas’ Sept. 2 sailing will now instead leave Fort Lauderdale on Sept. 4.
Mariner of the Seas’ Aug. 30 sailing, which was already extended and scheduled to return to Port Canaveral on Sept. 4, has again been extended an extra day to Sept. 5. Mariner's Sept. 2 sailing has been canceled completely.
Navigator of the Seas’ Aug. 30 sailing out of Miami is still scheduled to return to Miami on Sept. 4. Its Sept 2 sailing has been pushed back to Sept. 4.
Symphony of the Seas had its Aug. 31 sailing delayed on its return until Sept. 4. Its Sept. 3 sailing has now been pushed on day to Sept. 4.
Royal Caribbean is sending a notice to each passenger scheduled on impacted sailings and will offer future cruise credits for the number of days the cruise was shortened, based on total cruise fare paid. It is also offering a cruise credit of 100% for any itineraries not sailed.