Carnival Cancellation, Gratuity Hikes, New Icon Ship

It’s time for the weekly news recap from Cruise Hive, your go-to source for global cruise news. Our coverage this week includes stories about Carnival Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean, Princess Cruises, and Norwegian Cruise Line.

Cruise News Update

Ready to dive into this week’s exciting cruise news round-up? Read on for important news developments, including Carnival Vista being removed from service so that speed issues can be resolved; Carnival Cruise Line confirming its 2026-27 Caribbean deployments; Royal Caribbean ordering its fourth Icon-class ship; and Princess Cruises raising its crew gratuity fee.

Also, Norwegian Cruise Line cancelling four sailings of Pride of America due to a dry-dock schedule, and a Carnival Cruise Line guest complaining there are too many onboard announcements.

Carnival Vista Removed From Service for Propulsion Repair

After nearly a month of experiencing propulsion issues, Carnival Cruise Line’s 4,000-guest Carnival Vista is being taken out of service for repairs.

The cruise line has cancelled the ship’s September 7, 2024 cruise from Port Canaveral so that engineers can resolve the issue. The 8-day Southern Caribbean sailing was to call at Aruba, Curacao, and Grand Turk Island. Booked guests got the disappointing news on August 27, 2024.

The ship is currently sailing an 8-day Eastern Caribbean voyage, but officials have shortened the vessel’s time in port at Puerto Rico, St. Maarten, and the US Virgin Islands so that the ship can return to Port Canaveral as scheduled on September 1, 2024.

The ship’s speed problem became apparent during her August 4, 2024 sailing and again on the August 10, 2024 departure. That sailing also was adjusted to compensate for the ship’s slower speed.

Guests booked on the cancelled voyage will be refunded for the cruise fare and reimbursed for any booked shore excursions. The cruise line also will pay up to $200 per guest for change fees related to air travel. As a special bonus, guests will receive a 100% Future Cruise Credit, valid on any voyage booked by August 31, 2025.

The 133,596-gross ton Carnival Vista was the first of the line’s Vista class, and entered service in 2015.

Carnival Cruise Line Opens Bookings for 2026-27 Caribbean Season

Carnival Cruise Line rolled out its Caribbean deployments for 2026 and 2027 from four US ports — Miami, Port Canaveral, Galveston, and Baltimore, and announced changes planned for Half Moon Cay, a private island destination in the Bahamas.

Half Moon Cay is owned by parent company Carnival Corporation and is visited by several of its brands. Carnival Cruise Line is scheduling calls to the popular destination by its three Excel-class ships, Mardi Gras, Carnival Celebration, and Carnival Jubilee, once the enhancements are completed. Upgrades include a larger beach, a new pier, and expanded dining and beverage options.

Carnival Cruise Line’s new private destination on Grand Bahama Island, Celebration Key, will open in July 2025 and is a featured call on many of the line’s just-revealed Caribbean itineraries.

The 2026-27 voyages, now open for sale, offer 6- to 14-day vacations at sea in the Eastern, Western, and Southern Caribbean.

From Galveston, guests can sail aboard Carnival Jubilee, Carnival Dream, and Carnival Breeze on Eastern, Western, and Southern Caribbean cruises. From Miami, Carnival Celebration will sail the Eastern and Western Caribbean.

From Port Canaveral, Mardi Gras and Carnival Venezia will offer Eastern, Western, and Southern Caribbean itineraries, and from Baltimore, Carnival Pride will sail Bahamas and Southern Caribbean voyages. It also will continue to offer a Greenland and Canada cruise.

New Ship Order Will Expand Royal Caribbean’s Icon Class

Royal Caribbean is on track to add more ships to its Icon class, following the wildly successful launch of Icon of the Seas in January 2024. 

The cruise line’s parent company, Royal Caribbean Group, ordered a fourth Icon-class vessel from the Meyer Turku shipyard in Finland, and the agreement includes options for two additional ships.

The second in the class, Star of the Seas, is due to launch in 2025 and a third, unnamed ship, is slated to debut in 2026. The fourth, just-ordered ship — also unnamed — will enter service in 2027, giving the cruise line one new Icon-class vessel per year for at least the next three years.

Icon of the Seas is the largest cruise ship sailing today, at 250,800-gross tons and with capacity for 7,600 guests with all berths occupied. Star of the Sea will be a tad larger, making her the biggest cruise ship at sea when she begins sailing in August 2025.

The 20-deck Icon of the Seas has impressed guests with her AquaDome, the largest water park in the cruise industry, with six thrilling water rides, including a free-fall slide and the tallest water slide at sea.

Meyer Turku is building all of the Icon-class ships. All are powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG) and have other eco-friendly technologies such as water treatment systems.

Icon of the Seas is based in PortMiami, and Star of the Seas will homeport at Port Canaveral. No homeports have been announced for any of the other ships in the class.

Princess Cruises Hikes Crew Gratuity Fees By $1 Per Day

Princess Cruises’ guests are paying $1 more per day in crew gratuities after the line quietly upped the charge across all stateroom categories.

With the increase, guests in suites pay $19 per person, per day; guests in mini-suites, cabanas, and Club Class cabins pay $18; and those in all other categories pay $17. 

The hikes are effective immediately, but guests on future sailings who already booked a Princess Plus or Princess Premier package — both of which include gratuities, will not pay the extra $1 per day.

Like other cruise lines, Princess Cruises adds service charges ranging from 17% to 18% onto expenses such as specialty dining meals, drinks, spa treatments, and other services.

The crew gratuity fees on Princess Cruises, a Carnival Corporation brand, are similar to what sister brands charge.

Carnival Cruise Line charges $16 per person, per day for standard staterooms and $18 per person, per day for suites. Holland America Line charges $17 per person, per day for standard staterooms and $19 per person, per day for suites, for example.

Elsewhere in the industry, Royal Caribbean’s fees are slightly higher: It charges $18 per person, per day for most stateroom categories and $20.50 per person, per day for suites

And Disney Cruise Line has some of the lowest crew gratuity fees — $15.50 per person, per day in Concierge-level cabins and suites, and $14.50 in all other staterooms.

Crew gratuities on all cruise ships are automatically added to onboard accounts and can be adjusted before disembarking, although that is an uncommon practice.

Cruises Cancelled as Hawaii-Based Ship Heads to Dry-Dock

Norwegian Cruise Line cancelled four voyages aboard its Honolulu-based ship Pride of America in spring 2025. The affected sailings were to depart between May 3 and May 24, 2025.

The 22-year-old ship — the only one in the industry to sail the Hawaiian Islands roundtrip from Honolulu, was last dry-docked in April 2024, but that was due to the need for a technical repair. The spring 2025 dry-dock is for routine maintenance.

Booked guests are being refunded and anyone who booked using a Future Cruise Credit (FCC) will have the fare returned to their Latitudes account. The cruise line offered several options for rebooking, and will give guests who rebook a 20% discount on their new voyage.

The discount will be issued as an FCC and valid on Pride of America sailings departing between April 5 and April 26, 2025, and between May 31 and June 21, 2025.

An additional 10% discount, also as an FCC, is offered for bookings on any Norwegian Cruise Line sailing through December 31, 2025. (The discounts cannot be combined.)

Pride of America sails 7-day inter-island journeys across the Hawaiian Islands. Departing from Honolulu, on Oahu, the voyages visit Kahului, Maui; Nawiliwili, Kauai; and Hilo and Kailua Kona, on the Big Island of Hawaii.

Carnival Guest Complains About Onboard Announcements

Cruisers aboard Carnival Cruise Line’s Fun Ships are accustomed to hearing cruise director announcements over the ship’s PA system and/or in their cabins several times each day, but some guests say there are just too many.

A negative comment about the announcements from one cruiser on Brand Ambassador John Heald’s popular Facebook page prompted quite a discussion. 

The guest called them annoying and unnecessary since the activities and events being promoted by the cruise director already appear in printed materials and via the ship’s app. Moreover, said the guest, few cruisers pay attention to the announcements.

Heald replied that cruise directors are expected to promote activities that result in onboard revenue, but acknowledged that sometimes announcements can disturb guests who are napping or just relaxing.

To settle the question, Heald posted a survey asking whether general announcements should be piped into cabins. The poll garnered more than 9,400 votes at last count, with 57% of respondents saying they want cruise director announcements in their staterooms.

Heald, a former cruise director, closed the conversation with a thank-you to the fleet’s cruise directors for all they do to keep the Fun Ship guests happy.

More Cruise Headlines

Now that Cruise Hive has you caught up on all the big headlines, there are even more stories you won’t want to miss. Check out our coverage of Holland America Line’s 2026-27 Alaska deployments; Oceania Cruises deploying its first ship to Tampa, Florida;  Norway detailing environmental rules for cruise ships; Carnival Cruise Line updating its schedule of onboard theme parties; and Disney Cruise Line revealing the maiden voyage of Disney Destiny in 2025.