Cruise News Update: Ships Break Free, Behavior Warning, Oversold
You’ve come to the right place to keep up with all of the big cruise news stories of the week. Highlights of Cruise Hive’s latest recap include coverage of high winds impacting ships from Sicily to Alaska, a fire onboard an MSC Cruises ship, and Diana Ross being named godmother of Star of the Seas.
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Windy Weather Causes Mishaps on Three Ships
Erratic weather seems to be impacting cruise ships quite a bit lately. On three separate occasions on three ships, high winds caused the vessels’ gangways to collapse after their mooring lines snapped.
The most serious incident happened on Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Epic while the ship was docked in Catania, Sicily, on May 30, 2025. Strong winds caused the ship to move, breaking mooring lines and sending the gangway tumbling down — along with one female passenger who was on the gangway and fell into the water.
Her husband jumped in after her and the two were quickly rescued and taken to a local hospital. No serious injuries were reported. Wind gusts at the time were recorded at about 57 MPH.
The incident caused delays in passengers returning to the ship from shore excursions.
On the same day, Holland America Line’s Westerdam was calling at Ketchikan, Alaska, when high winds — with gusts reported up to 70 MPH, snapped the mooring lines and caused the gangway to become separated from the pier. No one was injured.
Finally, on May 31, 2025, MSC Cruises’ MSC Seascape was calling at the line’s private island MSC Ocean Cay when winds caused the ship to break from its mooring lines. Reports indicated that the gangway fell into the water but again, there were no reported injuries.
Carnival’s Preemptive Strike Against Unwelcome Behavior
Now that the busy summer season is (almost) officially here, families and groups of friends traveling together will climb aboard Carnival Cruise Line’s Fun Ships by the thousands, but the line has an important message for all guests via its “Have Fun. Be Safe” set of guidelines.
Guests embarking ships on June 1, 2025, received a letter from the line, reminding them of specific rules designed to keep all passengers safe.
Among them is the curfew that applies to all guests under age 17: They must vacate all public areas by 1 a.m. unless they have an adult over age 21 with them.
Noise is another area of concern for the line. In an effort to keep the noise down in stateroom corridors, guests were told there is no shouting allowed, nor is running along corridors.
Speakers and radios are banned, and anyone listening to music on personal devices must use earphones. The cruise line also warned guests not to attempt to bring illegal narcotics onboard, and reminded them that smoking and vaping are allowed only in designated outdoor areas.
Violations of the cruise line’s policies will be met with severe penalties, which can include fines and forced debarkation from the ship.
Lucrative Deals From Oversold Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship
Another overbooked Royal Caribbean voyage, this time affecting Adventure of the Seas’ 6-night Western Caribbean cruise departing Port Canaveral on June 7, 2025, has led to some very lucrative offers to guests willing to ditch the sailing.
Guests were invited to swap the cruise with another select voyage — the line offered four choices, and enjoy a 50% refund of the fare they paid plus a $300 onboard credit.
Another option allows booked guests to cancel, then receive a full refund and a 100% Future Cruise Credit of the amount they paid for the overbooked cruise. The credit can be applied to another sailing that departs on or before June 7, 2026.
Guests who cannot change their travel plans can hold onto their booking, since these generous offers typically result in easing the situation.
There have been several instances in recent weeks of ships being overbooked, including on Allure of the Seas, Navigator of the Seas, and Liberty of the Seas. In such cases, the cruise line offers enticing deals and perks in a bid to tempt cruisers onto another ship.
Carnival Cruise Line Is No Fan of These Fans
Carnival Cruise Line has prohibited hand-held fans from being brought into nightclubs and other indoor dance venues onboard its ships. It’s part of the line’s “Have Fun. Be Safe” rules, but some guests were puzzled by the policy.
They turned to brand ambassador John Heald’s Facebook page, where he answered guest questions and clarified policy. People wanted to know what kind of fan was banned — was the line referring to hand-held electric fans that are held close to your face on hot days, for instance?
No, Heald said. The line is not allowing so-called clack fans — the old-fashioned folded fans one might see in a movie about Victorian England. The reason behind the rule is related to a popular new dance, the “Boots on the Ground” line dance that is all the rage in nightclubs and dance clubs these days.
Some of the dance moves call for snapping a fan open and closed in time with the music. It’s quite a lively little dance, and if you haven’t seen it yet, take a look online. You definitely will not see this dance in a movie about Victorian England.
Fire, Power Outage Impacts MSC Orchestra Itinerary
MSC Cruises’ MSC Orchestra lost power and was adrift for several hours in the Mediterranean after an engine room fire affected the ship’s electrical switchboard.
The ship was sailing a 7-night cruise roundtrip from Sardinia when the fire broke out on June 2, 2025, the second day of the sailing. The ship had called at Rome and was on its way to Genoa when the blaze erupted.
Guests posted on social media that the fire was quickly put out, but the ship was left without power as it drifted near Corsica. Some said that crew members emerged from the impacted area of the ship with blackened faces, but no injuries were reported.
The 3,200-guest MSC Orchestra eventually regained power and arrived in Genoa, where she was set to overnight while repairs were made. The ship was scheduled to embark guests in Genoa, and at the next port call, Marseille on June 4, 2025, but those embarkations were cancelled.
In fact, the ship’s scheduled call to Marseille was cancelled, so it was not clear whether any of the remaining itinerary will go forward.
Cunard Begins Charging For Some Room Service Orders
Guests booking Cunard’s lowest-priced accommodation categories, Britannia and Britannia Club, are now being charged for items ordered from the room service menu after 10 a.m.
Prices range from $2.50 to $6.50, depending on the items ordered from the ships’ Day Menu or Late-Night Menu. Breakfasts ordered before 10 a.m. remain included in the cruise fare.
Also, a cover charge will be incurred by guests ordering brunch and afternoon tea items via room service. Previously, all room service orders were covered by the cruise fare.
None of the new fees apply to the two higher-level accommodations categories — Princess Grill and Queens Grill.
Each of the accommodation categories has designated main dining rooms, and in the dining room for Britannia and Britannia Club guests, all meals are complimentary, as is the buffet area.
Cunard operates four ships: Queen Mary 2, Queen Elizabeth, Queen Victoria, and its newest, Queen Anne.
Diana Ross Will Christen New Icon-Class Ship
With just over two months to go before Royal Caribbean’s Star of the Seas enters service, we now know who will be godmother to the Icon-class ship — superstar Diana Ross.
The line announced that the award-winning singer and lead vocalist for The Supremes back in the 1960s will name its new-build, the second in the popular Icon class, in August 2025.
Star of the Seas, with a capacity for 5,600 guests, will be based at Port Canaveral after making her way across the Atlantic Ocean from her shipyard in Finland.
The date of the christening has not been confirmed but is likely to be on or around August 31, 2025, the departure date of the ship’s inaugural voyage to the Western Caribbean. Four preview cruises are set to begin on August 16, 2025.
Star of the Seas follows the first vessel in the class, Icon of the Seas, which debuted in 2024.
Following her maiden voyage from Port Canaveral Star of the Seas will offer Eastern and Western Caribbean cruises, all calling at Royal Caribbean’s private island destination in the Bahamas, Perfect Day at CocoCay.
More Cruise Headlines
Don’t stop now! Cruise Hive has plenty more stories you won’t want to miss, including Oceania Cruises revealing its new Sonata class, Celebrity Cruises announcing its 2026 Presidents Cruise, and Holland America Line adding a third ship to Northern Europe in 2027.
Also, check out the news about Cunard unveiling nearly 200 new voyages, and the Port of Los Angeles welcomes its first Quantum-class ship.
Cruise News Update: Ships Break Free, Behavior Warning, Oversold