Royal Caribbean Ship Hit by Delays After Los Angeles Port Power Failure
Key Aspects:
Embarkation was delayed for Quantum of the Seas on Wednesday, February 18 due to a port power outage.
Heavy winds and rain downed power lines close to the Port of Los Angeles which may have been related to the delay.
No itinerary changes are confirmed for the ship on her 6-night cruise to Cabo San Lucas and Ensenada.
Guests boarding their 6-night Baja Mexico cruise aboard Quantum of the Seas on Wednesday, February 18, 2026 got a slower start than planned thanks to a power outage at the Port of Los Angeles.
Royal Caribbean texted guests to alert them to the situation and the slight delay to embarkation.
“The Port of Los Angeles is experiencing a power outage which will cause some boarding delays,” the notification explained. “Our boarding process for Quantum of the Seas will now begin at 1:00 PM. Please be sure to arrive no earlier than this updated time.”
Typically, boarding begins between 11 a.m. and noon, so the delay has been relatively minimal. Nevertheless, because of slower embarkation processing, it was important for guests to be aware of the situation and adjust their arrival to the cruise terminal.
Guests debarking the ship at the time discussed the power outage on Reddit, noting that customs processing was still able to move forward, but much more slowly.
“I was standing in line waiting to do customs when the power went out,” one guest described. “The facial recognition machines all still had power but weren’t working (I’m assuming no network). They had to go back to checking everyone’s passport manually. I’m sure that drastically allows things down.”
Heavy rain and strong winds moved through southern California and the Los Angeles area during the morning hours, causing intermittent power outages throughout the region.
According to local reports, a southbound stretch of the I-110 freeway in San Pedro just west of the Port of Los Angeles was closed for several hours due to downed power lines. It is unknown whether those specific power lines supply electricity to the port or cruise terminals, but the connection is possible.
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That specific freeway is the busiest connection leading to the Port of Los Angeles and the traffic congestion would have caused additional delays for guests heading for Quantum of the Seas.
No other cruise ships docked at the Port of Los Angeles on Wednesday, so no other vessels have been impacted at this time.
Power outages and network issues can have a significant impact on today’s technology-driven cruise terminal operations, particularly for security checks and passenger verification.
Cruise Hive reported extensively on Carnival Cruise Line’s recent tech glitches that caused embarkation and departure delays for multiple ships, as well as impacted onboard operations across the fleet.
Will the Itinerary Be Changed?
Quantum of the Seas‘ planned itinerary for her February 18 departure includes a full day at sea while the ship makes her way to Cabo San Lucas for an overnight visit from 1 p.m. on Friday, February 20 until 2 p.m. on Saturday, February 21.
Sunday will be another day at sea, and the ship will visit Ensenada on Monday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. before returning to Los Angeles on Tuesday, February 24.
While there have been no itinerary changes confirmed at this time, it is possible the ship may need to shorten her stay in Cabo San Lucas to make up for any departure delay.
It is also possible that Quantum of the Seas can simply make up for any delayed departure with a change in speed during her day at sea on Thursday, the first full day of the sailing.
Satellite tracking, however, confirms the ship did appear to depart on schedule at 7 p.m. Guests will no doubt be notified onboard if there are any changes to the ship’s overall itinerary or scheduling in ports of call.
Quantum of the Seas, the lead ship in Royal Caribbean’s Quantum class, can welcome 4,180 guests at double occupancy or up to 4,905 when fully booked with all berths filled.
Royal Caribbean Ship Hit by Delays After Los Angeles Port Power Failure