Carnival Cruise Line’s Carnival Pride has once again failed to be able to make her scheduled visit to Nanortalik, Greenland. Poor weather kept tender operations from proceeding safely, and despite waiting for the weather to clear, the ship was forced to cancel the port visit and move on.
This is a common issue with port visits to Greenland, where weather conditions can quickly deteriorate with fog, wind, rain, or rough seas – any of which can make it unsafe for small tender boats to operate.
Guests onboard the ship also confirmed just how fast the tremendously thick fog came in, slashing visibility and dampening the day.
“We are on the ship and it was amazing how fast the fog came in this morning. We knew when we booked this cruise we had a pretty good chance something like this would happen.”
“We are on the Pride and it is really foggy! We could see an iceberg early this morning but can’t see anything beyond our balcony now. We are having a great cruise and will continue to enjoy. We agree with Captain Vito’s decision!”
This is Carnival Pride‘s last sailing to Greenland this year, making the port visit all the more coveted by eager passengers. The vessel left Baltimore, Maryland on Sunday, September 8, 2024 and her Greenland ports are the first stops on the cruise.
While many guests onboard understand the last-minute port cancellation, others are upset at the situation. Carnival Cruise Line Brand Ambassador John Heald has been fielding questions and complaints about the missed port of call.
“This morning on the Carnival Pride the ship arrived into Nanortalik, Greenland. The weather was a bit misty when the ship arrived but as you can see the fog rolled in. The ship waited for two hours but there were no signs of any change,” Heald explained. “This of course meant that tender operations were not possible. Safety always comes first.”
Heald regularly responds to hundreds of daily questions, comments, inquiries, and requests from the more than 585,000 followers of his Facebook page. One thing he regularly invites is that if any guest is upset to please come to him rather than take out any frustrations on crew members.
“I know everyone will be disappointed,” he said. “I feel genuinely sorry for you but please, come shout at me here, not at the crew at the guest services desk. They are not to blame for fog and that it has not dissipated. Shout at me if you have to.”
In the meantime, while the ship has had to skip today’s scheduled port visit, crew members are sure to be adding new activities and entertainment to the daily schedule so everyone onboard can still enjoy their cruise vacation.
“Trust Captain Vito to keep you safe,” Heald urged. “Trust the crew to make sure you have brilliant Fun.”
Where Will Carnival Pride Go?
The only other Greenland port on the 14-night itinerary is Qaqortoq on Sunday, September 15. The weather for that visit does appear to be more favorable, but last-minute changes can impact whether the ship will be able to visit or not.
Read Also: Cruise Ship Tendering – Top 6 Pro Tips
After Greenland, the 86,071-gross-ton, Spirit class vessel will visit three ports in Canada, weather permitting.
St. Anthony, Corner Brook, and Sydney are all on the itinerary, on Tuesday, September 17; Wednesday, September 18; and Thursday, September 19, respectively. After that, two more full days at sea will bring the ship back to her Baltimore homeport on Sunday, September 22.
While the ports in Greenland are the most challenging to visit because of tenuous weather conditions, the ports in Canada may also be subject to poor weather. Nevertheless, ships have more success calling on those Canadian ports as planned.
Following this final Greenland sailing of the season, Carnival Pride will offer Bermuda, Bahamas, Caribbean, and Panama Canal sailings as she remains homeported from Baltimore year-round.
The ship’s next attempt to visit Greenland will be her May 25, 2025 departure, an identical itinerary to this autumn sailing but timed to take advantage of outstanding spring beauty.
Carnival Pride can welcome 2,124 guests aboard for each sailing, and is also home to more than 900 international crew members.
