Key Aspects:
- A glass panel shattered aboard Symphony of the Seas for the third time this year.
- Royal Caribbean has not identified a cause, though guests speculate the damage could be from a golf ball.
- The panel broke on the sports deck near the zip line, thankfully not shattering onto the Boardwalk 10 decks below.
For the third time in just over two months, Royal Caribbean’s Symphony of the Seas has had a glass panel shatter. This time, the incident occurred on the sports deck near the ship’s zip line on deck 16.
The shattered tempered glass appears cracked but does not appear to have fallen, which is a relief, as the ship’s popular Boardwalk sits below it on deck 6.
Passengers posted about the latest incident on Reddit, showing the panel roped off by lounge chairs and under repair.
“Royal is really not having a good time with glass lately,” one passenger joked.
While some speculated that the damage could have been caused by someone on the zip line crashing into the glass, others noted the panel is easily accessible from the deck, suggesting it may have been struck by furniture or broken from a flying golf ball from the nearby mini-golf course.
“Look more like someone waiting for someone on the zip line hit the panel…. unless the person on the zip line is about 8-10ft tall,” said one Redditor.
But one commentator, who works in the glass industry, said poorly tempered panes can “just pop, no questions asked.”
The incident took place as Symphony of the Seas sails a 7-night round-trip itinerary from New York to the Bahamas, which departed on August 10, 2025.
The ship is currently calling in Nassau, and will continue to the cruise line’s Perfect Day at CocoCay private destination tomorrow.
Incidents Spark Safety Concerns
The new incident adds to a string of similar problems on Symphony of the Seas. On June 29, a glass canopy panel over the adult-only Solarium shattered as the vessel was preparing to dock in Port Canaveral, Florida.
The glass was positioned over deck chairs on deck 15 and above a bathroom entrance on deck 14. Passengers reported hearing a loud pop but said they did not see shards on the deck.
Just three weeks earlier, on June 8, a window in the exclusive Coastal Kitchen restaurant broke apart, sending shards onto the pool deck below and narrowly missing passengers – thanks to the speedy warning of crew member Nitin Kumar.
In all cases, the glass has broken into small, relatively safe pieces, as designed, and crew members have been quick to clean the areas and replace the glass.
While glass breaking on cruise ships is rare, Symphony of the Seas’ recent incidents are raising questions among guests. Some suspect vibrations may be a factor, while others wonder if extreme heat is a culprit.
The 228,081-gross-ton ship, which entered service in 2018, last underwent dry-dock maintenance in April 2023.
That 21-day maintenance included technical upgrades and general maintenance. However, years of constant exposure to vibration, temperature cycles, salt air, and more can have an effect on mounting brackets, degrade seals, and form stress fractures that eventually lead to breakage.
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But Royal Caribbean’s unlucky accidents extend beyond Symphony of the Seas. Last week, on August 7, 2025, an acrylic glass panel on Icon of the Seas’ Frightening Bolt waterslide broke while a passenger was sliding through.
Royal Caribbean has not linked any of the recent breakages or confirmed their causes.
