October 10, 2019
(5:50 p.m. EDT) -- Cruisers booked on Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas from this Sunday through October 2019 might notice changes to their itinerary. The line has replaced certain ports of call, and adjusted arrival and departure times for others, as a result of the ship sailing at a reduced speed due to a mechanical issue. The issue has no affect on passenger safety, a spokesperson for the line confirmed to Cruise Critic.
Cruise Critic caught wind of the changes on its Royal Caribbean forums, where several members shared a letter they received from the line, alerting them to the modified schedules.
One letter reads: "We'll be reducing our speed because of a technical matter with one of the ship's three propulsion pods. As a result, we've had to make an adjustment to our itinerary" … "We are sorry for this unexpected change. Please know, when making these changes, we do everything possible to offer a similar replacement port of call and maximize your time in each destination. We are confident your cruise will be amazing."
A spokesperson for Royal Caribbean verified the letter. They added that the line will be working with passengers whose shore excursions have been affected by the changes. Tours booked for St. Thomas will be automatically refunded to cruisers' original forms of payment.
The following itineraries will be affected, as a result:
- Seven-night Eastern Caribbean cruises departing on May 5, May 26, June 16, July 7, July 28, August 18, September 8 September 29 and October 20: The departure time from St. Maarten has been revised from 5 to 6 p.m., while the departure time from San Juan has been moved from 3 to 1 p.m.
- Seven-night Eastern Caribbean cruises departing on May 12, June 23, July 14, August 4, August 25, September 15 and October 6: St. Maarten has been replaced by San Juan, with an adjusted call time of 7 a.m. to 2 a.m. Meanwhile, the arrival time into Nassau has been changed to 11 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. (previously 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.).
- Seven-night Western Caribbean cruises departing on May 19, June 9, June 30, July 21, August 11, September 1, September 22, October 13 and October 27 will now call at Falmouth, Jamaica, from 10:45 a.m. to 7 p.m. instead of 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Allure of the Seas is scheduled to enter dry dock in April 2020, where it will receive its "Royal Amplified" makeover. Royal Caribbean has not modified cruises beyond October 2019.
