Are Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruises’ Last-Minute Cancellation Policies Ending?

Unless there’s a Hail Mary pass, Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruises are about to end their “Cruise with Confidence” last-minute cancellation programs that applied to sailings booked by March 31, and departing by September 30, 2022.

The programs allowed cruise passengers to cancel cruises up to 48 hours before their sail date and get the full amount paid in Future Cruise Credit. The credit could be used on any sailing departing within a year of the original sail date.

The programs were created as a way to assure passengers returning to cruising in the midst of a pandemic that they had flexibility in travel planning, even if they chose for whatever reason not to cruise at the very last minute.

Other cruise lines also adopted a March 31, 2022 deadline for their similar pandemic-related cancellation programs, but some have since extended the deadline.

Holland America Line, for instance, extended its Flexible Cancellation program to May 31, 2022 for cruises embarking through September 30, 2022. Guests may cancel for any reason up to 30 days before departure and automatically receive a future cruise credit.

Neither Royal Caribbean nor Celebrity Cruises has updated their programs online. In both cases the deadline is still listed as March 31, 2022.

It was unclear whether or not the cruise lines would revert to their pre-pandemic rules regarding close-in cancellations and penalties applied.

Cruise Critic has reached out to Royal Caribbean for comment.