Norwegian Cruise Line has canceled cruises on three NCL ships as far as November 2021. Guests have started receiving a letter today about their cancellation options due to a fleet redeployment which will be revealed from the cruise line soon.
Norwegian Encore, Jewel and Jade Cruises Canceled
Cruisers are disappointed after Norwegian Cruise Line sent out a letter regarding cancelations for three of its ships. In the letter which one of our readers received, NCL has canceled departures for Norwegian Encore to October 28, Norwegian Jewel to October 6, and Norwegian Jade to November 4, 2021.
We reached out to the cruise line, and it’s confirmed that the three vessels will be redeployed. NCL is set to release further details on this soon with a newly revised ship schedule.
A Spokesperson for Norwegian Cruise Line informed Cruise Hive:
“We continue to evaluate the viability of sailing select itineraries aboard the various vessels within our fleet. At this time, we are suspending select voyages aboard Norwegian Encore, Jewel and Jade and will soon announce a revised deployment schedule. We thank you for your patience as we manage through this process, and as always, we thank you for your continued loyalty.”
The reason is due to a fleet redeployment with no other details on this included in the letter. Cruises for all three ships until November have been removed from the website. The earliest voyage is on Norwegian Encore, departing Miami, Florida, on November 14, 2021.
What Now for Impacted Guests?
It will undoubtedly be difficult for those guests who received a letter today, seeing that their much-anticipated cruise has been canceled, especially as far forward as October and November.
We know many cruisers have had multiple cruises cancelled between March 2020 and now but Norwegian Cruise Line is offering options so that guests can rebook if they wish.
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The cruise line will automatically refund the fare paid, and that should be completed within 30 business days. It will then take 7-10 days once the process has begun until guests see the money back to where they originally made their payment from.
Those who made the booking using a previous future cruise credit (FCC) will automatically get that back into their booking account within seven days of the cancelation date.
All guests will also receive a 10% discount for a future cruise booking. This can be used for up to one year and applied on sailings through December 31, 2022. The future cruise credit is going to be available on March 23, 2021.
What Could Be the Reason?
In the letter, the cruise line mentions a redeployment which could be a hint towards some kind of new itineraries in the UK or another country outside the U.S.
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With several cruise lines now planning to offer domestic sailings around the UK, could NCL be planning the same? Right now, Norwegian Encore is located off the Indian coast repatriating crew members.
It would make sense for the newest and greatest ship in the fleet to be among the first to resume sailings again. Heading to the UK would make sense rather than all the way back to the United States and the Caribbean.
Norwegian Jade is already based in Europe and is currently docked in Naples, Italy. She would be a good choice for domestic cruises around the UK. However, Norwegian Jewel is on the U.S. west coast at the moment, so we’ll have to wait and see what happens.
Norwegian cruise line could even be following Royal Caribbean’s lead by homeporting a ship in the Bahamas or even Celebrity Cruises with cruises out of St. Maarten.
Norwegian Cruise Line has confirmed that further details will be released soon on the newly revised deployment schedule. NCL has already suspended operations through June 30, 2021.
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