Key Aspects:
- A low pressure system in the Gulf of Alaska will bring heavy winds and rain to Alaska on September 17, 2025.
- Cruise ports throughout Southcentral and Southeastern Alaska will be impacted by the stormy weather.
- Six cruise ships have thus far been re-routed to avoid the rough seas.
It’s the tail end of the Alaska cruise season, and some of the final voyages of the summer have been impacted by bad weather.
So far, six cruise ships have publicly announced itinerary changes.
According to the National Weather Service (NWS), a low pressure system will bring rough seas, strong winds, and rainfall to Alaska’s Copper River Basin on Wednesday, September 17, which is located in Southcentral Alaska.
“A low pressure system in the Gulf of Alaska will bring rainfall to the Copper River Basin on Wednesday,” NWS advised.
“Rain chances decrease on Thursday as the system weakens and dissipates. Lower rain chances linger thereafter as an unsettled pattern remains in Southcentral Alaska,” the advisory continues.
Several cruise ports are located within Southcentral Alaska, including Seward, Whittier, and Anchorage.
Southeastern Alaska destinations like Endicott Arm, Juneau, and Skagway are also in the line of fire.
Let’s take a look at which specific cruise ships have been impacted.
Sapphire Princess, Ruby Princess, & Discovery Princess
These three Princess cruise ships all have something in common: They were all due to visit Juneau, Alaska, tomorrow, September 17, 2025, and all three have had to cancel their planned calls due to weather.
“The letter says they want to stay in protected waters. The cruise has already been dealing with 2 meter swells. This is good,” a current passenger said, although it’s not clear which Princess ship they are sailing on.
Sapphire Princess is nearing the end of a 14-night Alaska-bound sailing that departed from Vancouver, Canada, on September 6, 2025.
Meanwhile, Ruby Princess’s 11-night sailing is based out of San Francisco, California, and sets sail on September 13, 2025.
Next, Discovery Princess is currently in the middle of a 7-night Alaska sailing that is based out of Seattle, Washington, and embarked on September 14.
And speaking of Discovery Princess, the planned scenic cruising in Endicott Arm that is often paired with Juneau has also been cancelled.
“They cancelled our Endicott Arm cruise and Juneau stop due to weather. It’s a bummer but I understand safety is first,” one person currently onboard Discovery Princess reported.
The other ships likely cancelled any scenic cruising they had planned as well, although this has not been officially confirmed as of the time of publication.
Caribbean Princess
Instead of skipping Juneau, Caribbean Princess is taking the opposite approach.
The Grand-class ship arrived in Juneau on September 16, and is going to hunker down overnight at the South Franklin Dock until the worst of the weather passes.
The 3,140-guest ship will now depart Juneau at 6 p.m. local time on September 17.
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Unfortunately, this update means that Caribbean Princess’s planned call on Skagway on September 17 will have to be skipped entirely.
She will still be able to visit Icy Strait Point, Sitka, Glacier Bay, and Victoria in British Columbia before her current 10-night sailing concludes on September 23 in Vancouver.
Nieuw Amsterdam
Holland America Line, which is a sister-brand to Princess Cruises, has also had to reroute one of its cruise ships.
Nieuw Amsterdam is currently operating a 7-night, one-way sailing from Whittier, Alaska, to Vancouver that embarked on September 14, 2025.
And unfortunately, the planned visit to Skagway on September 17 has been scrapped due to the unsafe weather conditions. It has been replaced with a day in Haines, Alaska.
“I wish to inform you of a revision to our itinerary. Due to a forecast for adverse weather with high winds and heavy swells, we have cancelled our call to Skagway, Alaska scheduled for tomorrow, Wednesday September 17,” the Captain wrote in a letter to current guests.
“Instead, we will call to Haines, Alaska, from 6:00 AM to 9:00 PM.”
Additionally, current guests have reported that the planned scenic cruising to the Hubbard Glacier has also been cancelled for the same weather-related issue.
Viking Orion
Viking Cruises’ Viking Orion is the smallest ship to be impacted, with a capacity for just 930 guests.
The 47,842-gross ton vessel operated a longer 23-night voyage from Vancouver to Tokyo, Japan, that embarked on September 14.
It was supposed to be in Sitka on September 17, which is a tender port, but will actually pivot to Juneau instead.
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This is likely because strong winds make tendering operations unsafe.
However, the ship has timed its arrival in Juneau to account for the weather conditions, and is expected to be in the popular port from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. local time.
