Guests aboard Carnival Magic will not be sailing the 6-night cruise to Bermuda they anticipated this week, but instead, the ship will be visiting three destinations in the Bahamas.

This is due to the track and intensity of Hurricane Franklin, which is now in the Atlantic Ocean east of the Bahamas, moving north and expected to turn toward Bermuda within the next 2-3 days.

Carnival Magic Not Visiting Bermuda

Carnival Magic, which is currently homeported from Norfolk, Virginia, will not be visiting Bermuda as planned this week. Instead, the ship will be sailing a 6-night Bahamas cruise, departing Virginia on Sunday, August 27, 2023.

This complete itinerary change is due to the continued presence of what is now Hurricane Franklin, currently positioned roughly 620 miles (998 kilometers) east of Nassau and moving north-northwest at 8 miles per hour (13 kilometers per hour).

“Our Fleet Operations Center is actively monitoring Hurricane Franklin, now located in the Atlantic,” the email notification to guests reads. “Due to the projected path of the storm, we must modify the itinerary for your cruise. Regrettably, we will not be able to visit Bermuda.”

After a day at sea, the ship will visit Carnival Cruise Line’s private island in the Bahamas, Half Moon Cay, on Tuesday, followed by Nassau on Wednesday and Freeport on Thursday, before another day at sea brings the vessel back to Norfolk on Saturday, September 2.

Carnival Magic had been scheduled to call on Bermuda for an extended two-day visit, from 9 a.m. on Tuesday, August 29 through 4 p.m. on Thursday, August 31.

Tuesday afternoon, however, is when Hurricane Franklin – likely then to be a major Category 3 or even possibly a Category 4 storm – will be drawing closest to Bermuda before hooking to the east and around the island.

Because of the track, it is possible Bermuda may feel extended effects from the storm from midday Tuesday to early Thursday, exactly when Carnival Magic was scheduled to be in port.

“We were looking forward to delivering the itinerary you had expected and share your disappointment for this weather-related change,” the email reads. “We trust you understand this decision was made with everyone’s safety in mind.”

The 128,000-gross ton Dream-class Carnival Magic is offering Bermuda, Eastern Caribbean, and Bahamas itineraries from Norfolk. In late October, the ship will reposition to Miami to offer a mix of Eastern, Western, and Southern Caribbean cruises.

Due to the dramatic change of itinerary, Carnival Cruise Line is providing a $200 (USD) onboard credit per stateroom. All pre-purchased shore excursions for Bermuda area are also being refunded automatically to guests’ Sail & Sign accounts.

New excursion options for the Bahamas ports of call will be available for purchase onboard through the Carnival Hub app or by visiting the Shore Excursions desk on Deck 3, on the port side of the Magic Lobby just outside the Showtime Theater.

Tracking Hurricane Franklin

Hurricane Franklin has already affected multiple ports of call and cruise itineraries, starting with the closing of both Amber Cove and Taino Bay in the Dominican Republic last week as the then tropical storm moved across Hispaniola – which also impacted the previous Carnival Magic cruise by diverting the ship from its Eastern Caribbean itinerary to three calls in the Bahamas.

Now, Hurricane Franklin has maximum sustained winds of 85 mph (137 kph), making it a firm Category 1 storm. It is expected to continue strengthening as it moves north across the warm waters of the Atlantic toward Bermuda.

The storm is forecast to become a major Category 3 or Category 4 storm as early as Monday morning, and should begin a gradual eastward curve on Tuesday.

If the storm begins turning earlier or turns more sharply than anticipated, Bermuda could be in for a much stronger impact, or the storm may turn more gradually and could move closer to Newfoundland.

All guests traveling during hurricane season, June 1 through November 30, should stay informed of storm systems and stay in close contact with their cruise line about possible itinerary changes, delays, or other alterations as their sailing date approaches.

Staying flexible with travel expectations is also critical, and remembering that whenever a cruise line must make these types of drastic changes, it is always to prioritize the safety of the ship, guests, and crew members.

Overnight from Friday, August 25 into the early hours of Saturday, August 26, 2023, Carnival Cruise Line’s website suffered a glitch that incorrectly calculated the prices of the Cheers! beverage package for guests, resulting in the appearance of steep discounts.

While booked guests were quick to try and snap up the amazing deal, the price will not be honored as originally displayed, but Carnival is offering a discount to guests who tried to make the most of the bargain.

Carnival Cheers! Drink Package Glitch

A temporary glitch on Carnival Cruise Line’s website caused what appeared to be amazing discounts on the Cheers! beverage package.

While the price per day was displayed accurately for guests attempting to make a purchase, the calculation of the full package price was incorrect and did not show properly for checkout.

As a result, guests appeared to be scoring the beverage package for as little as a one-day, one-person price for an entire sailing, no matter what the length of the cruise. Part of the glitch also appeared as though it was no longer required for every guest in a stateroom to purchase the package.

Carnival Cruise Line brand ambassador John Heald has clarified the error and announced that while the mistaken price will not be honored, guests will receive a discount should they wish to repurchase the package they attempted to get on such a great deal.

“All guests who booked with this glitch will get a refund of their purchase and a one-time discount code should they wish to repurchase,” Heald said.

Impacted guests will receive emails with their discount code within the next few days. The details of the discount have not been revealed, but could be a percentage off, a free day of the package, a two-for-one bargain, or any other type of discount.

It is highly unlikely, however, that a “buy-one-day-get-the-rest-of-the-cruise-free” package discount will be offered.

About Cheers!

Cheers! is Carnival Cruise Line’s all-inclusive beverage package that covers both alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks for the duration of a cruise. The package is priced at a flat daily rate, which is currently $59.95 (USD) per day when purchased before setting sail, or $64.95 per day when purchased onboard.

An 18% service charge is also added to the package, and each adult in the same stateroom must buy the package (if one traveler buys it, their adult companions in the same stateroom must also buy it).

Accordingly, a 7-night cruise for two adults would have a total Cheers! price of $990 when purchased before sailing, or $1,073 when purchased onboard.

With the website glitch, the cost were ringing up at just about $70, showing for the entire sailing and with no need for all adults in the same stateroom to purchase the package. Quite an exceptional savings if the price was accurate!

Similar Error on Royal Caribbean

In July 2019, a similar online glitch happened for Royal Caribbean International’s drink package, permitting purchases of the Deluxe Beverage Package (Royal Caribbean’s equivalent to Carnival’s Cheers! package) for just $18 per person, per day, instead of the actual price at that time of $55 per person, per day.

Initially, Royal Caribbean International intended to negate the very steep discount and cancel and refund purchases at the mistaken rate, but later opted to honor the deeply discounted price with the message “this round’s on us.”

The difference in the errors is that Royal Caribbean International’s glitch still calculated a daily price, albeit at a steep discount. Carnival Cruise Line’s glitch, on the other hand, only calculated a single day’s price for guests.

Comparatively, for a 7-night sailing, Royal Caribbean’s discount was roughly 66%, whereas Carnival’s discount from this error amounts to an 86% discount on a 7-night sailing.

While it is no surprise, Carnival Cruise Line has confirmed that Carnival Freedom will be receiving a new, iconic “whale tale” funnel during the ship’s upcoming dry dock in just a few weeks.

The funnel was damaged in a fire in May 2022, and while the funnel was functionally repaired at that time, the instantly recognizable wings that make Carnival ships so distinctive were lost.

Carnival Freedom to Receive New Funnel During Dry Dock

Carnival Cruise Line brand ambassador John Heald has confirmed that the Conquest-class Carnival Freedom will receive a brand new, “whale tail” funnel during drydock in early October 2023. The ship’s original funnel caught fire in May 2022 while docked in Grand Turk, destroying the distinctive starboard wing of the structure.

Now, guests on sailings later this year will once again see the classic winged funnel on their ship. “She will get a new whale tail in a couple of months time during her dry dock,” Heald confirmed.

Carnival Freedom will be in dry dock from October 5 through October 22, 2023, in Cadiz, Spain. The dry dock is part of the ship’s regular maintenance schedule, which is why the funnel’s replacement has not happened sooner.

Other routine maintenance and upgrades will also be part of the dry dock, such as refinishing public areas, updating onboard technology, and other upgrades to keep the ship in peak condition.

All cruise ships regularly enter dry dock for maintenance and updates. Carnival Freedom‘s last dry dock was her emergency funnel repair in late May and early June 2022 after the fire, which was completed at the Grand Bahama Shipyard in Freeport, Bahamas.

Previously, the most recent dry dock had been in early 2019, when the ship received a moderate refurbishment with the redesigning of onboard retail spaces, the addition of the WaterWorks aqua park on Deck 10, and other updates.

About the Carnival Freedom Funnel Fire

Many cruisers don’t realize that the original funnel is still in place on Carnival Freedom, even after the fire. The classic “wings” are just exhaust vents and not strictly necessary for the ship’s safe and efficient operation, and they were removed after the fire.

The fire happened on May 26, 2022, while the ship was docked in Grand Turk as part of a 5-night Eastern Caribbean itinerary, and damage was limited to the starboard wing of the funnel.

While the photos and videos of the incident are shocking with black smoke and flames billowing from the funnel, the fire was contained within 20 minutes and fully extinguished shortly thereafter. There were no injuries reported in the incident, and no other damage to the vessel.

Due to the extensive damage and the need for emergency repairs, the ship was temporarily removed from service with three cruises cancelled. The sailing of the fire was also shortened and guests were transported back to Port Canaveral via Carnival Conquest, sister ship to Carnival Freedom.

During the emergency dry dock, the funnel’s “wings” were removed and the funnel certified for use without the added structures, giving the vessel more of a classic straight funnel appearance. Once repairs were complete, Carnival Freedom returned to service from June 11, 2022.

Carnival Freedom joined the Fun Ship fleet in 2007 as the last of the Conquest-class ships. The 110,000-gross ton vessel can welcome 2,980 guests when booked at double occupancy, and as many as 3,754 if all berths are filled and the ship is fully booked. At the time of the fire, just 2,504 guests were aboard, along with 972 international crew members.

The ship is currently homeported from Port Canaveral, offering 4- and 5-night sailings to the Bahamas and the Eastern Caribbean. After the two transatlantic sailings that will take her to and from Spain for her upcoming dry dock, Carnival Freedom will return to Port Canaveral to continue offering convenient getaways to destinations such as Grand Turk, Amber Cove, Bimini, Nassau, Half Moon Cay, and Princess Cay.