I cannot believe they changed the itinerary to THIS?!

Royal Caribbean have had a bad few weeks, first a technical fault caused the Navigator of the Seas to sail an amended itinerary. Hundreds of unhappy cruisers vented their frustrations online whilst cruisers due to sail on the next cruise anxiously held their breath to see whether their transatlantic re-positioning cruise from Southampton to Miami on the same ship would sail on schedule.

Well, they got their answer late last week.. The original itinerary should have seen the Navigator of the Seas leisurely crossing the Atlantic and visiting Boston, New York & Port Canaveral (for Orlando) en route to Miami. Due to multiple storms in the Northern Atlantic Sea, Royal Caribbean, upon the advice of their Chief Meteorologist James Van Fleet have drastically altered the cruise itinerary and cancelled the calls to Boston, New York & Port Canaveral and replaced them with the European cities of Zeebrugge, Le Havre & Las Palmas.

I’ve never heard of an itinerary being changed so drastically and so close to departure, I’m sure many cruisers will be scrambling around amending excursions or plans. Royal Caribbean understand that guests will be disappointed with this big change so are offering guests a 100% refund of their cruise fare. For guests who decide to continue with the cruise, they are offering up to $300 per stateroom on-board credit to make up for the disappointment.

I appreciate that Royal Caribbean have made this decision for the safety & comfort of their guests. I’ve not been on a cruise where the itinerary has been changed, I can only imagine the disappointment of booking a cruise specifically to see particular destinations and to then miss out. I hope the passengers still enjoy their time and experience on-board the Navigator of the Seas.

Have you ever been on a cruise where the itinerary has been changed by the cruise line? Did you cancel and re-book another cruise or did you sail on the amended itinerary?