The two smallest and oldest Carnival cruise ships, Carnival Elation and Carnival Paradise, must both remain out to sea and will be unable to return to their respective homeports because of the path, size, and strength of Hurricane Helene.

Carnival Cruise Line has reached out to booked guests for each ship’s next sailing, alerting them that their cruises will not be able to operate as planned.

“The Port of Tampa will close tonight in anticipation of the storm, and it is now clear we will not be able to operate your cruise tomorrow, Thursday, September 26,” the message to Carnival Paradise guests read.

The exact same message was sent to booked guests for Carnival Elation, except that vessel is homeported from Jacksonville.

For both ships, Carnival Cruise Line will send out a further update by 1 p.m. on Thursday with new information about when the ships may return and the next cruise can begin, as well as potential compensation or other details.

Carnival Cruise Line has posted official updates on its website, noting all different homeport impacts and itinerary adjustments.

“Our Fleet Operations Center in Miami continues to actively monitor Hurricane Helene, which is now entering the Gulf of Mexico,” the website said as of 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday. “The safety of our guests and crew remains our priority and our ships are sailing a safe distance from the storm.”

For both the homeports of Jacksonville and Tampa, the cruise line indicates that each ship is sailing safely away from Hurricane Helene.

“Once the storm passes and the port reopens, officials will be able to fully conduct a post-storm assessment before giving clearance to return,” updates for the current sailings read. “We are very tentatively anticipating sometime Friday, September 27, possibly later.”

Carnival Elation departed Jacksonville on Saturday, September 21 for a 5-night Bahamas itinerary, with visits to Nassau and Princess Cays.

Carnival Paradise departed Tampa on Saturday as well, but was unable to keep her planned 5-night Western Caribbean itinerary. The ship cancelled her Tuesday visit to Cozumel, but diverted to Costa Maya as an alternative instead.

Because both vessels will be at least a full day delayed in returning to their respective homeports, the next sailings will be unable to depart on Thursday, September 26 as originally planned.

Guests booked on those next cruises – a 4-night Bahamas trip for Carnival Elation and a 4-night Western Caribbean voyage for Carnival Paradise – are urged to sign up for text alerts to stay updated about plans for their cruises.

To be clear, Carnival Cruise Line does not control when homeports reopen and ships are permitted to return. Those operational decisions are made by port officials and the US Coast Guard after the storm has passed and safety inspections are complete.

Cruise Port Closures

Port Tampa Bay officially closed marine channels at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, September 25, as the US Coast Guard set Port Condition Zulu – gale force winds expected within 12 hours. While onshore operations will continue as long as safely possible, the port is now closed.

“The storm will have an impact to our cruise schedule. If you have any questions about a specific sailing, we recommend you contact your cruise line directly as all changes to itineraries will be communicated by your cruise line,” the weather update from the port read.

In addition to Carnival Cruise Line, ships from Margaritaville at Sea and Royal Caribbean both sail from Port Tampa Bay. Only Carnival Paradise is impacted on Thursday, September 26, however.

While the Port of Jacksonville remains open on Thursday evening, the US Coast Guard has already indicated that Port Condition Zulu will take effect at midnight and the port will be fully closed at that time. Only Carnival Elation sails from Jacksonville.

Read Also: Which Cruise Ships Are Affected by Hurricane Helene?

Hurricane Helene, currently a Category 1 storm but expected to strengthen, is moving generally north across the Gulf of Mexico, with landfall anticipated in the Big Bend or eastern panhandle area of Florida late on Thursday.

The storm’s wind field is extensive, with hurricane-force winds up to 25 miles from the center and tropical-storm-force winds as far as 345 miles from the center. This means many regions will see impacts from the storm, even though the eye may be hundreds of miles away.

At the moment, the center of the storm’s projected track takes it roughly 145 miles from Tampa with the closest approach early Thursday afternoon. Similarly, Helene’s center track is roughly 165 miles from Jacksonville at her closest, most likely very late on Thursday.

While cruise cabins may be cozy, they are also typically pretty tiny – and what they’re often lacking is enough plugs to go around, especially for guests traveling with a big family or lots of friends. 

For experienced cruisers, the best solution to this is to bring a power strip with extra plugs and/or USB outlets to make sure there are enough to go around. Most cruise lines allow extra plugs as long as they don’t have a surge protector. 

But Royal Caribbean made waves earlier in September when the brand opted to prohibit multi-plug outlets as a potential flammable item. The controversial change had many worrying about how to charge all their devices on their next cruise – and if the ban would carry over to other cruise lines. 

So far, none of the other mainstream cruise lines have banned the tech – and Carnival, which is arguably Royal Caribbean’s fiercest competitor in the family-friendly cruise market, won’t be the first to follow suit. 

“I just read where another cruise line has added multi plugs and power strips to their prohibited items and wanted to know if Carnival plans to follow,” one cruiser asked Carnival Brand Ambassador John Heald on his public Facebook page. 

“One cabin, two people, multiple devices that need recharging and limited wall plugs and usb ports makes for a cruise where you spend all your time swapping out charging cables,” she continued.  

Heald confirmed that this is not something Carnival guests will need to worry about anytime soon – as long as they leave power strips with surge protectors at home. 

“I read about this and we have no plans to do the same. Thank you, just remember no power strips with a surge protector are allowed,” replied Heald. 

Surge protectors are typically banned from cruise ships because they are more likely to increase the risk of fire – and it’s fairly easy to overload surge protectors if guests do not limit the number of devices they have plugged in.

Plugs without surge protectors come with much less risk – which is why they are normally allowed.

Why Did Royal Caribbean Ban Multi-Plug Outlets?

Royal Caribbean’s recent decision to prohibit extra plugs – whether they included surge protectors or not – has been highly controversial, especially as many cruisers now rely so heavily on staying connected through their devices.

The plug ban – which also includes extension cords and power strips – was likely made out of an abundance of caution.

Plugging multiple devices into a single outlet that may not be designed to handle that many plugs at once could lead to overheating, loss of power, potential fires, or other issues. However, cruisers who were used to relying on extra plugs were left feeling confused and frustrated.

Adding to the confusion is that Royal Caribbean is yet to release additional guidelines clarifying what their addition to the prohibited items list really means. 

For example, one guest reached out to the cruise line via messenger to find out if the ban also applied to charging blocks that feature multiple USB outlets.

“The current banned charging information is a little confusing to us and I want to make sure we bring the correct thing,” the future guest said in their message, along with a photo of the charging block in question.

Read Also: Royal Caribbean vs. Carnival Cruise Line: Which One Does it Better?

The cruise line confirmed the USB charging block the guest sent was allowed – which is confusing because multi-plug options aren’t permitted but a block that can charge multiple devices via USB was deemed okay.

As the chatter online continues, Royal Caribbean will likely be forced to clarify the change further in the near future. 

But in the meantime, this serves as a reminder for future guests to cross check their packing list with what their specific cruise line allows – and to plan accordingly – to avoid unpleasant surprises on embarkation day.

In this case, guests may want to opt to leave any non-essential devices at home to avoid extra stress.

Travelers from Texas and Northern Florida are getting more opportunities to sail with Carnival Cruise Line. Revealing new itineraries that extend through spring 2027, Carnival is offering its expanded Carnival Journeys and a broader selection of voyages from Galveston and Jacksonville.

“We’re always looking for ways to give our guests more vacation options, and extending sailings from Galveston and Jacksonville is a big part of that effort,” said Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line.

Cruises from Jacksonville, Florida, in 2026 and early 2027 will continue on the 2,052-passenger Carnival Elation, currently offering year-round service from the northeast city port. 

The 70,367-gross-ton vessel will feature a mix of 4- and 5-day cruises with Thursday and Saturday departures.

Guests on the 4-day itinerary can enjoy calls in the much-anticipated Celebration Key, Carnival Cruise Line’s new private destination in the Bahamas scheduled to open in 2025, as well as the island nation’s capital, Nassau. Select itineraries will also include Bimini in the westernmost part of the islands.

For 5-day sailings, Carnival Elation will also visit Carnival Cruise Line’s private Half Moon Cay or Princess Cays, both in the Bahamas.

Meanwhile, the 2,124-passenger Carnival Miracle will be repositioned to Galveston for a second season in 2026, maintaining the cruise line’s four-ship presence in Texas’s busiest cruise port.

Wrapping up its season in Alaska before the repositioning, Carnival Miracle will embark on a special 16-day Panama Canal cruise on September 26, 2026, as part of the Carnival Journeys program.

These longer sailings range from 9 to 16 days, call on more exotic destinations, and include enrichment activities and more immersive programming.

Once in Galveston, guests can expect a mix of short and long sailings for the 88,500-gross-ton ship, including 4-day Western Caribbean cruises to Cozumel for a quick weekend getaway. Five-day voyages will travel to Progreso, Mexico.

Read Also: Eastern vs. Western Caribbean Cruise: Which Will I Prefer?

Additional extended vacations include 10-day Eastern and Western Caribbean itineraries featuring stops at Celebration Key, Half Moon Cay, and other notable ports such as Grand Turk in the Turks and Caicos, Amber Cove in the Dominican Republic, and Belize City in Belize.

Some sailings also include visits to Costa Rica and Panama, with shore excursions available to visit the Panama Canal.

“These new itineraries offer something for every traveler, whether they’re seeking a quick getaway or a longer adventure,” said Duffy.

Familiar Routes with a New Celebration to Come

Carnival Elation’s and Carnival Miracle’s itineraries may sound somewhat familiar because the ships are already operating Bahamian and Caribbean routes.

In Jacksonville, Carnival Elation is currently and routinely taking guests on 4- and 5-night voyages to the Bahamas, while Carnival Miracle is about to move into its first Galveston season on October 16, 2024.

Currently wrapping up a Hawaii voyage and repositioning via California, Mexico, Costa Rica, and Colombia, the ship’s inaugural season in Texas will begin with a journey to Montego Bay, Jamaica; George Town, Grand Cayman; Roatan, Honduras; Belize City; and Cozumel, Mexico.

Its schedule will also include calls to Key West, Florida, and multiple stops in the Bahamas for shorter Eastern Caribbean sailings. Longer cruises will visit Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao, and Jamaica on Southern Caribbean itineraries.

The changes to the current offerings on both ships will come when Celebration Key opens in July 2025.

Located on Grand Bahama Island, the $500-million destination will welcome up to four ships at a time, with 12 Carnival Cruise Line ships already scheduling the new resort as part of a heavy rotation of calls in 2025 and 2026.

Demand for Celebration Key is anticipated to be so strong that Carnival Cruise Line already has plans to expand it to accommodate two more ships simultaneously by 2026.