Royal Caribbean’s Brilliance of the Seas took on nearly a dozen unexpected guests on Wednesday, February 26, 2025 with a rescue at sea.
The cruise ship was enjoying a day at sea en route to Progreso, Mexico when a small, overloaded craft was spotted waving white materials – including a bucket – and signaling distress.
The frantic signal was spotted by crew members aboard Brilliance of the Seas, and the ship immediately responded to the summons by slowing and turning to offer assistance.
The ship’s pilot boat was dispatched to rendezvous with the stranded craft, and upon investigation, it was decided to bring the refugees aboard the cruise ship.
Reports differ as to whether 10 or 11 refugees were aboard, but all were accounted for and safe thanks to the quick thinking and timely actions of the ship’s crew.
The refugees appeared to include both men and women, and were brought off their makeshift craft by the pilot boat in two trips.
The cruise ship’s captain did confirm that everyone was safely rescued from the smaller craft and that they were all in good condition.
Brilliance of the Seas is currently sailing a 7-night itinerary from New Orleans, Louisiana. The ship departed the Big Easy on Saturday, February 22 and had already visited Cozumel and Grand Cayman.
While Wednesday was a day at sea, Brilliance of the Seas is scheduled to visit Progreso on Thursday before spending another day at sea on Friday and returning to New Orleans on Saturday, March 1.
The rescue occurred east of the tip of the Yucatan peninsula, northeast of Cancun. Despite the slight delay for the humanitarian operation, there is no expected change to the ship’s itinerary or her Progreso port visit.
What Will Happen to the Refugees?
As is standard procedure whenever a cruise ship assists a refugee craft, the safety of everyone aboard is the first priority.
After being brought onboard the cruise ship, the refugees would have been given any medical care necessary for their immediate needs, as well as provided with food and water.
The ship’s security would be closely supervising the refugees, and while they are not considered prisoners or detainees in any way, they are also not permitted in most public areas of the cruise ship. Instead, they’d be looked after in a secure crew area.
Depending on the exact jurisdiction of the region where the rescue occurred, local authorities would be notified of the incident. This will permit the now-unmanned craft to be recorded and recovered if necessary, or else listed on available registries so it does not pose a hazard to other boats and marine traffic.
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The refugees will be turned over to local authorities as soon as possible. This might be via a rendezvous with an official boat, or else at the next port of call if possible. Then, they will be subject to the local procedures for such incidents. Typically, this includes being repatriated to their place of origin.
Cruise ships do not ask about politics, paperwork, criminal records, immigration status, or any other issues when performing such rescues. Above all, the safety of those impacted is always the foremost concern.
This is not the first time Brilliance of the Seas has been involved with refugee rescue operations.
The ship’s most notable incident was in 2016, when 18 Cuban refugees were rescued from a raft that had been stranded at sea for more than three weeks. Sadly, nine additional refugees perished before the cruise ship found the raft.
The 90,090-gross-ton, Radiance-class ship can welcome 2,142 guests aboard at double occupancy, or up to 2,543 travelers when fully booked. Brilliance of the Seas is currently homeported from New Orleans, offering 7-night Western Caribbean itineraries through the end of March.
In early April, the ship will sail a 14-night one-way trip from Miami to Barcelona. That transatlantic cruise is on her way to a scheduled dry dock, after which she will spend the summer in the Greek Isles with sailings from Athens.
In the fall, Brilliance of the Seas will homeport from Boston and then move to San Juan for the winter Caribbean season.
