Key Aspects:
- A gastrointestinal illness outbreak is impacting operations onboard Ruby Princess during a 20-night cruise.
- The impacted cruise departed San Francisco on June 12 and cases were reported very early in the sailing.
- Enhanced sanitation protocols are in place and all staterooms are being deep cleaned to minimize illness spread.
Guests enjoying the epic 20-night Ultimate Alaska Solstice cruise aboard Ruby Princess are not having exactly the smooth sailing they’d hoped for as a likely norovirus outbreak has impacted operations onboard the 113,561-gross-ton ship.
The ship departed San Francisco for the unique sailing on Friday, June 12, 2026. Within just a couple of days, illness began to be reported and enhanced sanitation protocols were implemented.
Letters delivered to guests’ staterooms on Monday, June 15, informed them of the outbreak as well as the additional measure of deep cleaning every one of the ship’s 1,542 cabins.
“During this voyage, some guests have reported experiencing gastrointestinal symptoms,” the letter confirmed. “To help limit the spread of illness, we are implementing an enhanced, ship-wide cleaning and disinfection program.”
The deep cleaning of individual staterooms was scheduled across two days, Tuesday, June 16 and Wednesday, June 17. Guests were divided into four different groups (two groups on each of the two planned cleaning days) and asked to stay out of their staterooms during their assigned cleaning time windows.
Those windows were 2-hour periods during which the housekeeping team would thoroughly clean and disinfect individual staterooms. Guests were asked to have surfaces clear of objects in the stateroom, and all high-touch surfaces were to be sanitized.
On June 16, Ruby Princess visited Wrangell, Alaska from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. This meant many guests were off the ship and the cleaning could proceed without too much difficulty.
Wednesday, however, the ship is cruising Endicott Arm as a day at sea for scenic glacier viewing. While guests will still be onboard the vessel during this deep-cleaning day, different areas of the open decks will be more enticing for stunning glacier views while staterooms are sanitized.
In order to facilitate the deep stateroom cleaning, morning stateroom service was suspended on both days, though evening turndown service was still offered as normal.
Other Onboard Changes for the Outbreak
Guests onboard the ship have reported a number of other operational changes to lower any risk of illness spread, such as crew members now wearing gloves and serving food in the buffet rather than self-service. Crew members are also ensuring that everyone washes their hands before entering the buffet.
Additional cleaning is being done onboard, with a focus on high-touch surfaces such as railings, elevator buttons, and door handles.
The onboard activities and entertainment, however, are proceeding as scheduled. Dancing, trivia, and shore tours are all normal, as are other onboard events.
No changes have been made to Ruby Princess‘ itinerary at this time, which includes port visits to top Alaskan destinations such as Juneau, Skagway, Valdez, Seward, Sitka, and Icy Strait Point before the ship will return to San Francisco on July 2.
Many other guests have commented about how well the crew is handling the situation, ensuring the cruise is still enjoyable and the excellent service continues despite the extra protocols now in place.
How Many People Are Sick on Ruby Princess?
Ruby Princess can accommodate up to 3,080 guests per sailing and is also home to roughly 1,100 international crew members. No exact numbers of reported cases have been confirmed, but the outbreak has not yet been reported to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Outbreaks onboard cruise ships are not reported to the CDC until a combined total of cases reaches 3% of those onboard the vessel, including both guests and crew members.
If Ruby Princess is sailing at her double occupancy capacity, that means at least 125 cases would need to be confirmed for a report to be made to the CDC.
It is possible that the threshold will be reached as the total number of cases is counted for an entire sailing, though not everyone may be ill at the same time.
Cruise Hive has reported on two other illness outbreaks onboard Princess Cruises ships so far this year, both of which were confirmed as norovirus. In early May, more than 200 cases were reported aboard Caribbean Princess, and in March, more than 150 total cases were reported aboard Star Princess.
