Princess Cruises Pushes Back Restart Date to Mid-May

Princess Cruise announced Wednesday it will cancel sailings through May 14, 2021, joining similar announcements from Holland America and Carnival Cruise Line.

Princess said the further delay is needed to prepare and develop its plans to meet the "Framework for Conditional Sailing Order" issued by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in addition to the uncertainty around travel restrictions.

Princess Cruises previously paused global guest cruise vacations and cancelled all departures on all ships through March 31, 2021.

Affected sailings include in the Caribbean, the California Coast, along with early season Alaska and Europe cruises.

“We appreciate the patience from our loyal guests and travel advisors as we work to meet the health and safety requirements for our return to service,” said Jan Swartz, president of Princess Cruises. “We continue to prepare our ships for our return to service and we are eager to see our guests back on board to create summertime memories.”

Guests currently booked on cancelled voyages will have the option to receive a refundable Future Cruise Credit (FCC) equivalent to 100% of the cruise fare paid plus an additional non-refundable bonus FCC equal to 25% of the cruise fare paid.

To receive the above FCCs, no action is required by the guest or their travel advisor. The FCCs can be used on any cruises booked by May 1, 2022 and sailing by Dec. 31, 2022. Alternatively, guests can request a full refund.

Princess will protect travel advisor commission on bookings for cancelled cruises that were paid in full “in recognition of the critical role they play in the cruise line's business and success.”