Hurricane Milton Forces Celebrity Cruise Ship Itinerary Change

You can receive daily cruise news updates directly to your inbox, so you don't miss a thing! Go ahead and Subscribe here.

Hurricane Milton, which transformed from a tropical storm into a hurricane on October 6, 2024, is now barreling down on Florida as a Category 4 hurricane today, October 7, and wreaking havoc on cruise itineraries. The latest to update its schedule is Celebrity Cruises.

The cruise line has adjusted the itinerary for the 126,000-gross-ton Celebrity Reflection, which departs on a 4-night voyage today from Fort Lauderdaleโ€™s Port Everglades.

Scheduled to travel to Key West for an 8-hour call on October 8, Celebrity Reflection will instead head east, away from Florida, to visit Nassau, Bahamas. The 10-hour call will give passengers more time in port.

Itโ€™s following call, at Perfect Day at CocoCay, owned by Royal Caribbean Group, its parent company, is also located in the Bahamas.

The cruise line hopes the new itinerary will keep passengers and the ship away from Milton, expected to hit the west coast of Florida late on October 9 or the early morning hours of October 10.

โ€œOur Captain, along with our Chief Meteorologist, Craig Setzer, has been monitoring active weather along our path, which is preventing us from a safe arrival into Key West, Florida,โ€ Celebrity Cruises announced to guests.

It then apologized for the last-minute change, stating, โ€œYour safety is always our top priority. Being onboard is one of the safest places to be, as we can avoid inclement weather.โ€

Shore excursions originally planned for Key West will automatically be refunded, with Celebrity Cruises touting the options available in Nassau, from a visit to Junkanoo Beach to a boat ride to Pearl Island and to playing on inflatable water obstacles.

For guests who booked independent tours, the cruise line is offering a complimentary call aboard the 3,046-passenger ship to contact tour operators to cancel.

Celebrity Reflection will spend a day at sea and return to Port Everglades on October 11, 2024.

Hurricane Milton Intensifies

The National Hurricane Center, which first reported Tropical Storm Milton on October 5, 2024, said the now-Hurricane Milton in the Gulf of Mexico is strengthening due to the Gulfโ€™s warm waters, recorded at 85 degrees Fahrenheit. It is currently 735 miles west-southwest of Tampa.

On October 7, the National Weather Service issued a hurricane watch for the Gulf Coast of Florida, extending to the Dry Tortugas, which includes Key West, where Celebrity Reflection was expected to call.

As a Category 4 hurricane, Milton is recording wind speeds of up to 156 miles per hour. If the storm intensifies into a Category 5, wind speeds can exceed 157 miles per hour.

Hurricane Milton Track, October 7, Advisory 10
Hurricane Milton Track, October 7, Advisory 10

Milton could also bring dangerous storm surges of up to 5 feet and heavy rainfall of up to 15 inches to areas already hard-hit from Hurricane Helene. 

That storm, which arrived in Florida on September 12, 2024, as a Category 3, brought storm surges of 7 feet to parts of the state.

Read Also: Port Everglades Terminals: What You Need to Know

As a result of this new storm, Floridaโ€™s governor has declared a state of emergency for 35 counties, including Broward County, where Port Everglades is located.

Hurricane Miltonโ€™s path is currently taking the storm across the state of Florida, north of the Bahamas, and expected to be in the Atlantic, away from cruise ports, by the wee hours of the morning on October 11, not impacting Celebrity Reflectionโ€™s adjusted route.

Unfortunately, guests aboard Celebrity Reflection may still experience some rain during their voyage.

GigSky Cruise SIM

If you enjoyed the article and would like no fuss daily cruise news to your inbox directly from Cruise Hive, you can Subscribe here.

Lissa Poirot
Lissa Poirot
Lissa Poirot has been covering travel for more than a decade, including sites such as TripAdvisor, CruiseCritic, The Points Guy, Family Vacation Critic, and Family Traveller. Her love of travel has led Lissa to visit more than 43 countries and has her on a mission to see every state in the U.S. (only 4 states to go!). When she's not traveling, she's exploring new attractions and events on the weekends, be it in New York City or Philadelphia, as Lissa lives between both fabulous cities.

Don't Miss Cruise Hive's Daily Update!

Free expert cruise tips and news from Cruise Hive! We'll send you the latest cruise updates daily to your inbox.

Don't Miss Any Cruise News!

We'll send you the latest cruise updates daily to your inbox.

Copy link