Port Times Adjusted for Norwegian Joy Due to Whale Zone Restrictions

Cruise passengers plan for months to enjoy their selected itinerary, eagerly anticipating ports of call and what they will do in the different destinations they visit.

Unfortunately, those visits don’t always happen as planned, and it can be disappointing when guests find out at the last minute that itinerary adjustments are necessary.

This is the case for passengers setting sail aboard Norwegian Joy on September 2, 2024. Upon arrival at the cruise terminal and when boarding the ship in New York, they were informed of two port time adjustments for their 8-night one-way trip to Quebec City, Canada.

“While we have made every effort to maintain the original itinerary, due to whale zone speed restrictions enroute from New York City, New York to Boston, Massachusetts, we have adjusted the itinerary,” the notification letter read.

While the ship’s 3 p.m. departure from New York was not impacted, it is now necessary for Norwegian Joy to sail more slowly, which impacts when she will reach Boston as well as the next port of call in Portland, Maine.

Originally, the ship was to spend Tuesday, September 3, 2024 in Boston from 1:30-10 p.m. Now, however, the ship will not arrive until 4 p.m., but will also stay an hour later, until 11 p.m., to attempt to recover some of the time lost earlier in the day.

Because Norwegian Joy will be leaving Boston later than planned, her next port of call is also adjusted. The ship was to have been in Portland, Maine from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Wednesday, September 4. Now, the time in Portland is shifted one hour later, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

If travelers have booked tours through Norwegian Cruise Line to explore either Boston or Portland, the time of those tours will be automatically adjusted for the new port times. If any tours are unable to be shifted, guests will receive a full refund of that tour cost returned to their onboard ship account.

Tours can still be booked for either destination at the Shore Excursion Desk on Deck 6, as well as tours for the other ports of call on the itinerary: Sydney, Nova Scotia; Prince Edward Island; and Saguenay.

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No other port times are impacted by the whale zone speed restrictions, nor will Norwegian Joy be delayed arriving in Quebec City for debarkation on Tuesday, September 10.

The change in times will be disappointing to the up to 3,883 travelers aboard Norwegian Joy, especially since the whale zone speed restrictions may have been known for some time and a last-minute, embarkation day notification could have been avoided. Nevertheless, the change is relatively minimal and the ship will still be visiting both adjusted ports of call.

Will More Cruises Be Impacted?

The 167,725-gross-ton, Breakaway Plus class Norwegian Joy is currently homeported from New York, with alternate departures from Quebec City through September to take advantage of the spectacular fall foliage the region is famous for.

This means, however, that the ship’s next few voyages may have similar adjustments. This includes the 7-night return sailing from Quebec City to New York departing on September 10, as well as the next pair of itineraries – 8-nights from New York to Quebec City on September 17 and 7-nights return to New York on September 25.

Guests booked on those sailings will want to stay in close communication with Norwegian Cruise Line about any itinerary adjustments or port time shifts.

While Norwegian Cruise Line does not explain exactly what whale zone speed restrictions are causing the slight change for Norwegian Joy, they are likely related to North Atlantic right whales, which the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration lists as one of the world’s most endangered whale species.

New protections and expanded speed restriction zones were first implemented in 2022, when just 350-360 of the whales were believed to remain.

The whales’ western Atlantic range extends from the Canadian maritime provinces to the southern tip of Florida, and protections are in place in much of that range to keep the roughly 50-foot whales safe from collisions and other disruptions.

In addition to the changes for Norwegian Joy, it is possible that other cruise ships making fall foliage voyages in the region may also be impacted. Cruise lines will communicate any changes to their booked guests as needed.