When it comes to planning a relaxing family vacation or a solo getaway, a popular choice is a cruise. There's just something about getting a cabin on a ship where your every need is attended to and relaxing. Plus, you get to hop off at different ports, then explore a bit or enjoy a pre-booked excursion. And these days it seems like there's a specialized cruise for almost any taste. That's probably a good thing since you're going to be on this boat with these people for a while.
Keeping that in mind, things don't always go according to plan. Norwegian Cruise Line recently made an announcement that 40 sailings from their 2025 - 2026 schedule had been cancelled. Even more recently, the company made a second announcement that more sailings would be cancelled from that same schedule. Anyone who had already booked on those cruises will be receiving a full refund as well as a 10% cruise credit that can be used on any sailing through the end of 2026.
The ships are still on the water, of course. What's changed is where they are leaving from and where they are going to. Many of the new itineraries have the cruises leaving from various destinations and heading for the Bahamas, the Mexican Riviera, and various parts of the Carribean. These kind of shifts in sailings and itineraries do happen with some frequency but the large number at one time has caught some travelers off guard. There will be more than a few people making alternate plans.
Founded in 1966, Norwegian Cruise Line is now the fourth-largest cruise operator in the world. The company currently runs 19 ships in different classes with another eight on the way. Four of those upcoming ships will be a new class, the largest that Norwegian has ever had, and are projected to been in operation in the 2030s.