Cruise News Update: Leaps from Pier, Lost Loyalty, Cabin Waste Flood
Looking for the top cruise news stories of the week? We have them right here in Cruise Hive’s new edition of its weekly recap. Highlights include Carnival Cruise Line’s new rewards program getting panned by guests, and Royal Caribbean planning renovations to three mega-ships.
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Mystery Jumper Makes A Splash in Juneau
A cruise passenger visiting Juneau, Alaska, witnessed a most unusual sight as she stood on the cruise pier on or around June 12, 2025 — a woman making a flying leap from the pier into the water.
Make that very chilly water, since the temperature in Juneau harbor at this time of year averages about 46 degrees Fahrenheit, according to data from Tideschart. The jumper wasn’t dressed for such an act, since she was wearing just shorts and a T-shirt.
It is unknown whether the woman was a local person or a cruise guest. The passenger who watched the jumper, Bailey Shelton, was a guest on a Royal Caribbean ship and filmed the puzzling event on her phone.
She posted the video on TikTok on June 12, 2025 and it has been seen roughly 470,000 times since then. There were no injuries reported in the vicinity of Juneau Harbor that day, so it seems the jumper completed her water jump safely.
If she was a cruise guest, she risked being banned from future cruises, since jumping into the water at harbors is frowned upon; it’s dangerous, and fraught with liability for the cruise lines.
When Politics and Travel Just Don’t Mix
In an unfortunate example of how politics can negatively impact tourism, a residential cruise ship cancelled its first world voyage because a number of booked guests from Canada refused to travel to the US embarkation port.
Victoria Cruises Line had planned to operate its 1,350-guest Victoria Majestic on a 29-month world cruise starting on July 26, 2025, departing from Florida’s Port Everglades. But in a notice on its website on June 16, 2025, the line revealed the sailing was indefinitely postponed.
The reason: Political and economic tensions between Canada and the US had prompted a number of Canadian guests to cancel their bookings, apparently because they decided not to travel to Florida.
The cruise line called it an “unexpected wave of cancellations,” which lowered the final occupancy count to an unsustainable level. The line indicated that a new departure date would be announced soon.
An undisclosed monetary compensation will be offered to booked guests, along with refunds. Victoria Majestic rents its staterooms to guests on a monthly fee basis, with a minimum booking of six months. The world cruise was to last 2.5 years and call at 703 global ports.
Cruise Guest Arrested on Embezzlement Charge
The long arm of the law reached all the way to Ketchikan, Alaska, on June 12, 2025, when a cruise guest on an undisclosed ship was arrested on a charge of embezzlement in Laramie County, Wyoming.
Based on an arrest warrant issued by the Laramie County Sheriff’s Office, Karen Bryan, 64, was arrested by Alaska authorities as she was boarding her ship and was set to be extradited to Wyoming. The woman allegedly embezzled money from a local church in Laramie County.
Laramie County Sheriff Brian Kozak posted details of the arrest on Facebook, explaining how his office worked in coordination with Alaska law enforcement.
The ship that the suspect was sailing on has not been named. There were five cruise ships calling to Ketchikan that day: Holland America Line’s Koningsdam and Eurodam; Princess Cruises’ Royal Princess and Sapphire Princess; and Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Bliss.
In Laramie County, deputies in the sheriff’s office were said to be fighting over who gets to travel to Alaska to bring the suspect back to Wyoming.
Should Carnival Cruise Line Rethink Its New Rewards Plan?
Carnival Cruise Line’s new Carnival Rewards program is going over like a lead balloon, as some loyalty club members are giving it a major thumbs-down for several reasons.
Perhaps the most disappointing aspect of the new program, which replaces the existing Very Important Fun Person (VIFP) program and takes effect in 2026, is that loyalty levels are to be reset every two years, rather than accrue over a lifetime.
It means that Carnival guests must re-earn their benefits in a two-year time frame.
Another element of the new rewards plan requires guests to earn loyalty points based on spending, including the base cruise fare plus shore excursions and all onboard purchases, like spa treatments, for example.
This replaces the existing plan that bases loyalty club levels on the number of days a guest has sailed with the line. Currently, the days continue to accrue, enabling guests to attain higher and higher levels over many years.
The cruise line also is urging guests to use the Carnival Cruise Line branded credit card as a way to earn points faster. One guest likened the new plan to a rebate program rather than a loyalty club.
Big Renovations On Tap For Three Big Ships
Royal Caribbean announced that Ovation of the Seas, Harmony of the Seas, and Liberty of the Seas will be renovated in 2026 and emerge with new and improved public spaces and accommodations.
The upgrades are part of the Royal Amplified program, implemented in 2018 to re-energize the line’s older ships. Liberty of the Seas entered service in 2007, and Ovation of the Seas and Harmony of the Seas were launched in 2016.
Some of the planned enhancements include a refreshed pool deck with private casitas and new dining venues on Ovation of the Seas; the addition of the Ultimate Family Suite and an adults-only Solarium on Harmony of the Seas; and a new Royal Escape Room and redesigned pool deck on Liberty of the Seas.
The cruise line also revealed the ships’ deployments in 2026. The 4,200-guest Ovation of the Seas will sail her summer season in Alaska, while the 6,600-guest Harmony of the Seas will shift from Europe to Florida for a series of Caribbean voyages.
The 3,800-guest Liberty of the Seas will deploy to Southampton, UK, during summer 2026, then reposition to Galveston, Texas, for winter.
A Rude Awakening For a Couple on a Marella Cruises’ Ship
This story gives new meaning to the phrase “ick factor.”
Imagine sleeping soundly aboard the Marella Explorer 2 cruise ship and then, suddenly, you are doused with kitchen-waste sludge that literally came through the ceiling of your stateroom.
That’s what happened to passengers Pam and Ken Jackson, who hail from the UK and told their story to a local news outlet.
The two were covered in the foul muck and it ruined many of their belongings. Turned out that a waste pipe located right above their cabin had burst and the waste slid down the walls.
The Jacksons were moved to a new stateroom, but that came with other problems, including a broken bed and a malfunctioning air conditioner. Crew members did their best to help, but even after washing the guests’ clothes, the horrible smell remained.
The cruise ship entered service in 1995 and was last dry-docked for maintenance in 2023. TUI Cruises refunded part of the couple’s cruise fare and paid an additional £470 ($631 USD) for the damaged clothing.
More Cruise Headlines
Looking for even more cruise news? You’ll find it on Cruise Hive, where we have additional stories about MSC Cruises revealing new spaces aboard MSC World Asia; a new report showing how cruise ship anchors damage the Antarctica seabed; and Norwegian Cruise Line rolling out a big summer sale.
Also, Disney Cruise Line lowering its deposit to 10% of the cruise fare, and a Virgin Voyages ship experiencing ongoing engine issues.
Cruise News Update: Leaps from Pier, Lost Loyalty, Cabin Waste Flood